
Glass. 
Book 






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Gofi^iiglit]>i?_ 



COFfRICHT DEPOSIT. 




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BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR 



Orleans County, Vermont. 



BY 

Fkedekick W. Baldwin, 
Barton, Vermont. 



WITH stki-:l engraved portraits. 




M O .N r P E L I E R : 

Vekmoni' Waixiiman and State Journal 1'ress. 

188G. 



COl'VKlClllKLl 
1)Y FKEDKKKK W. H.M.UUIN. 

i8fc6. 






PREFACE. 



"Biography is history teaching by example. It is the basis of 
all historical structures. The chronicles of the nations are com- 
posed of the sayings and doings of their men and women. These 
make up the sum of history." 

Since the year 1800 a county court has been held in Orleans 
county, and persons year after year have been admitted to practice 
as attorneys in this court, have been admitted to its bar. A record 
of such admissions in most instances has been kept by the county 
clerk; but this number is small compared with those admitted else- 
where who have resided and practiced law here. Of this large 
number there was no correct record, and in a very few years the 
scattered links of history could not have been gathered up sufficient 
to have written the chronicles of the bar of Orleans county. Even 
now, with the most careful and diligent research, a few are lacking. 
The aim of the author has been to give a more or less extended 
biography of every lawyer in regular standing ever in this county ; 
also a few pioneers of the profession, who in the early days made 
the bar of North-eastern Vermont famous. If in this I have not 
been entirely successful, it may be I have succeeded in collecting 
and preserving data which at some future day may serve as a nucleus 
for a history worthy of this bar. All facts and figures have been 
gathered from the most reliable sources, and writers secured who 
were possessed of an intimate and extensive knowledge of the life 
and character of their subjects. The earnest endeavor of all has 
been to fairly and faithfully represent the legal fraternity. I have 
been assisted in preparing the material for this volume by many of 
the profession and others, who have contributed articles and ren- 
dered efficient aid in other ways. I have also received valuable 
information from various historical anil biographical works. To all 
these I have intended to give proper acknowledgment under indi- 
vidual biographies, but I desire here to tender them my sincere 
thanks for their very acceptable help. 



4 PREFACE. 

Thanks are especially due to those who have furnished me their 
portraits, and to Hon. Redfield Proctor of Proctor for portrait of 
Hon. I.saac F. Redfield, to T. C. Kimball of New York for portrait 
of John H. Kimball, Ksq. 

I am also indebted to John Mattocks of Chicago for article of 
Hon. John Mattocks, to Isaac F. Davis of Rockford, 111., for articles 
of Hon. Charles Davis and Hon. Isaac Fletcher ; to Edward P. 
Vilas of Madison, Wis., for article of his father, Hon. Levi B. Vilas ; 
to W. W. Frost of Manchester, N. H., for article of Henry H. Frost, 
Esq. ; to F. J. Prentiss of Greenport, L. I., for sketch of Henry F. 
Prentiss, P^sq. 

To e.xtend a knowledge of the career of those whose fame rests 
uijon their high legal character and attainments must exert a whole- 
some effect upon the rising generation of American lawyers, and 
increase that honorable ambition which forms the main incentive 
to great and noble actions. 

In these pages the reader will perhaps find memoirs of some who 
have enjoyed every advantage that wealth and early education could 
bestow ; he can also trace the history of many more who, by their 
own individual efforts, have risen from the obscurity of penniless 
and friendless boys to some of the highest and most responsible 
stations in the land. 

If the humble, care-worn student, as he reads these brief sketches, 
shall feel his hope of success raised, his difficulties diminished, his 
energies stimulated to renewed and more vigorous exertion ; if those 
who in years past have gone out from among us to make their homes 
in the great city or upon the wide prairie, as they peruse these 
memoirs, shall be carried back to old scenes, and are thereby assisted 
in recalling the many virtues of old friends, the pleasure experi- 
enced by the author in preparing this book will be distributed 
according to his desire. 

p-REDEKicK W. Baldwin. 



HISTORICAL CHAPTER 



IN November, 1792, the Legislature of Vermont in session at 
Rutland passed an act entitled " An act for dividing the coun- 
ties of Orange and Chittenden into six separate counties," and cre- 
ating as one of such counties the county of Orleans, and its limits 
as set forth in said act were' as follows : " That all the lands lying 
east of the county of Franklin, westward of the west line of the 
county of Essex, bounded north by Canada line, and south by the 
south lines of the towns of Morristown, Elmore and Greensborough, 
including those towns be, and the same is hereby erected into one 
entire county, to be called and known by the name of the county 
of Orleans." At this time, within said limits, the following towns 
had been granted : Barton, Brownington, Coventry, Craftsbury, 
Derby, Duncansborough (now Newport), Eden, Elmore, Glover, 
Greensborough, Hydepark, Holland, Irasburgh, Jay, Kellyvale (now 
Lowell), Lutterloh (now Albany), Missiskouie (now Troy), Morgan, 
Morristown, Navy (now Charleston), Salem, Westfield and Wolcott ; 
but no settlements had been made only in the following named 
towns, which, according to the Vermont Register of 1804, had in 
1 79 1 the following population : Craftsbury, eighteen, Elmore, 
twelve, Greensborough, nineteen, Hydepark, forty-three, Morris- 
town, ten, and Wolcott, thirty-two. In 1821 the town of Westmore 
was annexed to the county from I-'ssex county, and the town of 
Elmore annexed to Washingtcjn county from Orleans; and in 1835 
when the county of Lamoille was formed, the towns of ICden, 
Hydepark, Morristown and Wolcott, were made a part of that 
county. In 1880 the town of Salem was annexed to Derby, leav- 
ing eighteen towns in Orleans county. 

In 1799 the legislature established courts in Orleans county, 
but provided that the supreme court should not meet in said county 
until directed by a future act of the legislature ; that all causes 
proper to come before the supreme court should be tried and deter- 



6 HISTORIC A I. CIIAPTEK. 

mined before that court at its session in Danville, in the county of 
Caledonia. Brownington and Craftsbury were made half shire 
towns for the time being, but the act provided that no permanent 
jilace be established for the county buildings until five years from 
the passage of said act. John Ellsworth of Greensborough, was ap- 
pointed first chief judge, and Timothy Hinman and Elijah Strong, 
assistants. The time for holding county courts was fi.xed for the 
fourth Monday of November and March, annually ; to be alter- 
nately holden in said towns ; the first session to be in Craftsbury 
in the month of March, 1800. The judges, as above, met at the 
house of Dr. Samuel Huntington in Greensborough, November 20, 
1 799, and appointed Timothy Stanley of Greensborough, clerk, and 
Royal Corbin of Craftsbury, treasurer. The first session of the 
county court was held at Craftsbury, March 24, iSoo. Timothy 
Hinman of Derby, was chief judge, Samuel C. Crafts of Craftsbury, 
and Jessie Olds of Westfield, assistants, Timothy Stanley was 
county clerk, Joseph Scott of Craftsbury, sheriff, Joseph C. Brad- 
ley of Greensborough, state's attorney, and Ebenezer Crafts of Crafts- 
bury, judge of probate. On the second day of the session Moses 
Chase was admitted to the Bar of Orleans county. The tlocket for 
that term shows five causes, and the names of John Mattocks and 
Moses Chase ajijiear as attorneys of record. At the No\-ember 
term, which was held at lirownington, the docket shows twenty-si.x 
causes, and the names of John Mattocks of Peacham, Moses Chase 
of Bradford, Asa King of Danville, Samuel B. Goodhue of St. 
Johnsbury, Joseph Bradley of Greensborough, and Jonathan Ware 
appear as attorneys of record. While the town of Craftsbury was 
one of the shires of the county, courts were held in a building 
which stood upon the same lot where Craftsbury Academy now 
stands. The oldest residents remember it as the " Old Court 
House." From the best information I can obtain it was built by 
the town or the citizens of the town of Craftsbury, and it was used 
for a time for the purposes of court house, town house and cliurch ; 
and about 1830 the town took it away and built a new town house 
upon the site, and subsequently when the town house was built at 
South Craftsbury. the town ])resented the okl one to the academy 
corporation, I am informed that Col. Joseph Scott's buttery was 
used for a jail. At I^rownington courts were held in the school 
house of District No. One (the only school tlistrict in tt)wn at 



IIIsroKICAI. CIlAl'l'ICR. 7 

that time), a one-story, four-roofed building, just about large enough 
to liold comfortably the judges, jurors, and officers of the court. 
This building was situated about a mile north of where Browning- 
ton village stands, on the old road to Derby. Judge Strong's cellar 
was used as a jail when occasion demanded. In 1S12 the legisla- 
ture established the shire at Irasburgh, as soon as the inhabitants 
of that town, within four years, should build a court house and jail 
to the acceptance of the judges of the supreme court. In 18 15 a 
court house and jail were built and accepted, so that the August 
term, 18 16, of the county court was held at Irasburgh. The court 
house built at that time was used for that purpose until 1847, when 
it was moved off, and a new one constructed upon the site at an 
expense of about four thousand dollars ; this was also built by the 
town of Irasburgh at no expense to the county. This court house 
was used by the county until the one now in use at Newport was 
erected. The jail built in 18 15 was made of logs hewn square, and 
put one upon another for the walls, and ceiled with three-inch hard 
wood plank. This structure was used for a jail until 1838, when it 
was taken down, and a stone building eighteen feet square, and two 
stories high, was erected. This was found to be too small, and was 
not considered safe; hence, in 1861, the legislature authorized the 
county judges to raise three thousand dollars for the purpose of 
building a new jail. In 1862 a jail twenty-six by thirty-six, two 
stories high and built of the best of granite, was completed, and 
afterward used for a jail. In 1884 the legislature passed an act 
locating the shire of Orleans county in some town on the Connecti- 
cut and Passumpsic Rivers Railroail, said place to be selected by a 
committee of three, to be appointed by the governor. Such com- 
mittee were appointed, and designated Newport as the best location 
for the shire, and a very commodious and substantial brick court 
house and other buildings having been constructed at a cost of 
about twenty-two thousand dollars, the February term, 1886, of the 
county court was held at that place. In 1801 the legislature 
changed the time of holding the county court to the first Monday 
of March and fourth Monday of August. In 18 12 the August term 
was changed to the third Monday of August. In 1821 the time was 
changed to the last Monday of February and secontl Monday of 
September. Again in 1827 the time was changed to the second 
Tuesday of April and last Tuesday of August. In 1831 the time 



8 IIISTDKICAL CHAPTER. 

was changed to the third Tuesday of June and the third Tuesday 
of December, and in 1833 the fall term was changed to the fourth 
Tuesday of December. In 1S37 the spring term was changed to 
the fourth Tuesday of June. In 1868 the terms were fixed to be 
held on the last Tuesday of February and the first Tuesdaj^ in 
October, and in 1870 changed as they now are, the first Wednesday 
ne.xt after the first Tuesday of September, and the first Tuesday of 
February. 

A supreme court was established by the legislature in 1816, to 
be holden annually on the second Tuesday ne.xt following the fourth 
Tuesday of June. In 1S22 the time for holding this court was 
changed to the fourth Tuesday of January. In 1846 the time was 
again changed to the eighteenth Tuesday next after the fourth 
Tuesday of December, and in 1849 changed to the second Tuesday 
of August, and in 1857 changed to the first Thursday next after 
the third Tuesday in August. In 1882 the time was changed to 
the second Tuesday in May. 



PIONEERS OF THE BAR 

OF 

ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 



JOHN MATTOCKS. 

By Hon. Isaac F. Rf.dfielu. 

MY first recollection of Gov. Mattocks of Peacham, Vermont, 
elates from the year 1816, when at the age of twelve years 
I was a pupil at the academy in that town, and in the " town 
and gown " contests, in ball playing or other games. Gen. Mat- 
tocks, as he was then called, was the champion of the academy 
boys. I trust it will not be considered scandalous to name here, 
that the prize in one of these contests was a gallon of pure whiskey. 
That was before the days of modern scientific discovery that all 
stimulus in health is either useless or hurtful, or that the Bible is 
a myth. 

I cannot say that my personal knowledge of Gov. Mattocks was 
of much account from that time until my admission to the bar 
in Orleans county in 1827. At that time he stood decidedly at the 
head of the bar in that section of the state, and had done so for 
nearly forty years. He was born at Hartford, Conn., March 4, 
1777. His father, Samuel Mattocks, who was the Treasurer of 
Vermont from 1786 to 1801, was one of the early settlers of Tin- 
mouth Rutland county. He read law, I think, at Middlebury, 
with his brother-in-law, Miller, who was a very distinguished mem- 
ber of the bar of that day, when it embraced as much talent, to say 
the least, as it has ever done since. He subsequently removed to 
Peacham, where he spent the remainder of his life, mainly in the 
practice of his profession. 

Those who think of Peacham as it has been for the last thirty 
years, isolated from public travel, and equally from that great 
source of assumed modern enlightenment, the conversion by means 



lO PIONEERS OF THE BAR 

of rapid revolution and more rapid progress ; perched upon hills a 
thousand feet above tide water, more completely shutting it out 
from the sunshine of modern progress than a thousand miles of 
distance, have no adequate comprehension of what it was in the 
early years of the present century, when John Mattocks, the young 
giant in his profession, and the young leader in the politics of the 
state, (for that was still in the hands of the old Federalists, the 
most national, and the most upright and talented party the country 
has ever produced) ; the champion of every field and always facile 
priiiceps inter pares, might not unjustly be said to wield a wider 
and more controlling influence than any man of his years had ever 
done before or has ever done since in the state. 

I know this will seem like exaggeration to those in the cities and 
large towns of the state, and who have not the slightest compre- 
hension how any man, not in contact with the railway and the tele- 
graph, can possibly acquire any influence upon anybody or anything. 
But such men have yet much to learn of the real elements of great- 
ness, whether in individual character or in that of states and em- 
pires. When the state was controlled by such men as Isaac 
Tichenor, Nathaniel and Daniel Chipman, Chauncey Langdon, 
Charles H. Williams, David Edmonds, Samuel Swift and his 
brother Benjamin, Samuel Miller, Daniel Farrand, Daniel Buck, 
Elijah Paine, John Mattocks, Samuel Prentiss, and others of like 
character and caliber, Peacham was in fact the headquarters of the 
council chambers of the party for all the most essential practical 
ends, and Peacham Academy was then under the leadership of such 
head masters as Ezra Carter and David Chassell, whose equals 
could not now be found in any similar positions in all New England, 
and sent forth such pupils as Thaddeus Stevens, the great American 
commander, and Samuel Merrill, the early political leader in Indiana, 
and Wilbur Fisk, the almost inspired disciple and preacher of Meth- 
odism throughout America, and an army of others of like eminent 
character and gifts. At such a time we need not wonder that such 
men as Leonard Worcester, the eloquent preacher and wise and 
conscientious guide and counselor, and William Chamberlin, and 
John W. Chandler and John Mattocks, all residents of Peacham, 
wielding and surrounded by such influences, were able to make an 
important impression upon public sentiment throughout the state. 
And such was most unquestionably the fact during all the period of 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VEKMOMT. II 

the Federal ascendancy in the state until the year 1815, with occa- 
sional interruptions of more or less extent before that time. 

But Gov. Mattocks* g;reat • life work was certainly not accom- 
plished mainly in public political positions, although he undoubt- 
edly secured a very large share of the public confidence throughout 
the whole period of a full and rounded term of earthly existence. 
He was always the representative of his town in the legislature, 
whene\'er he desired it. He was a member of the constitutional 
convention of 1835. During the last war with Great Britain he 
was brigadier-general of militia in that part of the state. He was 
in congress three terms — 1821-1823, 1825-1827, 1841-1843. He 
was a member of the supreme court from 1833 to 1835, and gov 
ernor of the state in 1843 and 1844, during which period the former 
vice-president of the United States, Richard M. Johnson, visited 
the state, and was received by the governor and general assembly 
in joint session, the governor making one of his always happy 
speeches of welcome, concluding, in his own inimitable manner, 
" How are you, Dick Johnson .' I am glad to welcome you to this 
state, and to this chamber." The vice-president afterwards said, he 
was sorry he had not known his excellency's sobriquet, that he 
might have replied, " How are you, Jack Mattocks .' God bless you ! " 

But I must hasten to conclude my brief exposition of the public 
and professional life of one of the most eminent and highly gifted 
men of my native state — the most gifted, as it always seemed to 
me, among them all, with the single exception of Senator Phelps, 
who unquestionably bears the palm in that respect above all others 
of the state to the present time. 

But Gov. Mattocks' great field of excellence and glory was 
the bar. There is no shamming and no short-cuts to eminence 
there. Stern justice applies its measuring-rod with unflinching 
impartiality to all comers there, whether from the walls of the uni- 
versities, or from the fields and the flocks, or the highways and 
by-ways of common life in any department. There is there no favor- 
itism, and no stinted or grudging recognition of power and strength 
in that field. The humblest may there expect a patient hearing, 
and the most highly favored can demand no more. It was my for- 
tune, when I came to the bar in Orleans county, to find all the im- 
portant advocating in the hands of lawyers from other counties. 
And of this number Gov. Mattocks was far the most eminent, 



12 PIONEERS OF THE RAK 

although there were many others, such as Fletcher, Cushman, Pad- 
dock and Rell, that it would not be easy to match anywhere in the 
state, at any time since. We naturally felt some humiliation at 
such a state of things, but we could not break it up, since the cli- 
ents would control the matter to a large extent, in spite of the 
advice of the local bar. But we could and did seek redress in 
another way. Some of the members of that bar attended the 
terms in the adjoining counties, and returned the favor they did us 
by arguing their causes. This was always kindly received by Gov. 
Mattocks. His position was too assured to feel any twinges 
of envy or jealousy. He said to his old companions of the bar 
that it had something of the sound of old Roman times, " dclcndo 
est Cartliago," more in sport or badinage than in earnest, no doubt. 

The most effective and eloquent address I ever heard from Gov. 
Mattocks, was the closing address to the jury on behalf of 
the inft)rmation in the trial of Cleveland for murder in procur- 
ing an abortion. The accused was connected by affinity with 
some of the most influential families in the state, who naturally 
shrunk from being declared kindred with a murderer, which gave 
great interest to the trial in many important aspects. The court 
was composed of the chief justice and one other judge of the 
supreme court, with two lay assistants. The law was discussed at 
the bar from day to day during the trial, and was supposed to be 
definitely settled before Mr. Mattocks arose to make his closing 
argument. The popular sentiment seemed quietly to have settled 
down into the expectation of a verdict of manslaughter. But Mr. 
Mattocks had not spoken twenty minutes before we all felt that he 
was carrying everything before him, with the power of the enchant- 
ing wand. The spectators, the bar, and the court, and especially 
the jury, comprehended at a glance that Mattocks would accept 
nothing less than a verdict of murder in the first degree, and that 
this he must and would have, in spite of all obstruction from the 
public opinion or the charge of the court. His manner was cool, 
almost to solemnity, his diction plain even to the very verge of the 
common places of the vernacular in ordinary conversation. His 
person short and dumpy, and his eye almost obscured by fi.xed 
introversion, gave no special force to his look or his manner, which 
was indeed that of fi.xedness, rather than of expression. But his 
words possessed such a power as words never seemed to me to 



OKLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 1 3 

have on any other occasion. He arranged the evidence in .such a 
manner it had never before as.sumed, and the rule of law which he 
invoked from the court as the only security of the life of the body 
politic, and of each of its members, was so simple and natural as 
to seem irresistible, and such it proved, for the court at once 
acceded to it, withdrawing all its former announcements. 

I have listened to Webster, and to most of the more distin- 
guished American orators, both at the bar and in congress, and to 
the most distinguished orators of lingland at the present time, in 
parliament as well as at the bar, but for real maddened eloquence I 
have never heard anything which seemed to me quite up to this 
argument of Gov. Mattocks. It is scarcely needful to add that 
Cleveland was convicted of murder and sentenced to death, a most 
salutary example, but finally his punishment was commuted. 

I have listened to a great many of Gov. Mattocks' arguments 
at the bar, both to court and jury, sometimes when not myself 
engaged in the cause ; sometimes when acting as opposing counsel, 
and sometimes while sitting as judge, and in all of them there 
seemed to me great power and ability. I had no reason to 
suppose myself a particular favorite of the governor at any time. 
Our position as opposing counsel in every case where we were 
both engaged naturally led to no very special intimacy, and in 
addition to this the effort of a young man to compete as far as pos- 
sible wath one so much his senior, naturally tended to create the 
feeling of assumption and pretension on my part, unless I was 
more fortunate than falls to the common lot in such cases. But in 
our last tournament at the bar, just before his elevation to the 
bench, where he remained till his own voluntary retirement, when 
my labors at the bar had been exchanged for others of a graver 
nature, he acted the part of a noble and generous competitor, say- 
ing to some of his friends who urged him to attend to the re- 
argument of the case, directed by the supreme court, that he could 
never have a better time to retire than when he had made a drawn 
game with the young lion of the North. It was said with no 
expectation to have it reach me. He was far too delicate for any- 
thing of that character. 

But I felt that it was generous and sincere, and as Junius says, 
"that it would wear well, because it was extorted from him ;" and 
I repeat it here, more in justice to him than from any gratification 

3 



14 



PIONEERS OF THE BAR 



it can give me, when I scarcely expect consolation for the sorrows 
of advancing years from things of that character. 

I am conscious that I have dwelt mainly upon the more serious 
elements in his character, which were always predominant in all 
his great efforts at the bar. But in times of relaxation, and when 
no deep sense of responsibility rested upon him, he was a man of 
great geniality and playfulness of character. His witticisms in the 
undertone of the bar are more remembered than those of almost 
any other in the state, and many of them are more worth repeating 
than most of those we meet in collections of the kind. 

[The idea last expressed leads us to quote from a paper of Rev. 
S. Goodwillie in Vermont Historical Magazine.] 

"His fund of anecdotes was inexhaustible, and both in public 
and private he illustrated the subject with pertinent anecdotes well 
told in a few words. His conversation was sprightly, and he en- 
joyed a hearty laugh. He was fond of joking, even with strangers. 
One evening at the place of his residence, he heard the agent of 
the Colonization Society represent its claims in a manner so forci- 
ble that he thought him a good beggar in a good cause. The next 
morning the agent called upon the governor, and in general con- 
versation asked him, ' What is the chief business in this place at 
present.'"' 'Begging,' quickly replied the governor, 'is iioiv the 
chief business,' at the same time slyly slipping some gold into 
the agent's hand, for which he thanked him. ' Not at all,' said 
the governor; '/ thank you, sir.' 'Why thank me.'' asked the 
agent. 'Because,' answered the governor, ' Yon let 7ne off so easy.' 
In a tight pinch he was very adroit in devising ingenious and 
prompt expedients for effectual deliverance from difficulty. He 
wrote such a hasty and imperfect hand that sometimes he could 
not read it himself, but which his brother, a lawyer in the county, 
could decipher. Going to trial before the county court, on one 
occasion, he had such difficulty to read the writ, though written 
with his own hand, that the judge questioned the correctness of 
his reading, when he instantly gave it to his brother, saying, 'You 
are college learned; read that writ.' At one time when returning 
from the court at Guildhall, he lodged on Saturday night in the 
town of W., then a new settlement, where they had no public wor- 
ship. The next day he went home through Barnet, intending to 
worship with the Presbyterians in that town (whose religious prin- 



OKLKANS COUNTY, VERMONT. I 5 

ciples and practices he esteemed so hi<;hly as to refer to them with 
approbation in a reported opinion he gave from the bench of the 
supreme court), and to hear their venerable minister, Rev. David 
GoodwilHe, whom he held in high estimation, preach. The ne.xt 
morning the sheriff from Barnet arrested him at his residence in 
Peacham and took him to Barnet, to be tried upon a charge of vio- 
lating the law of the state by trav'eling on the Sabbath in prosecu- 
tion of his secular affairs. 

Arraigned before a sage Scotch Presbyterian justice, he called for 
a jury, and by exercising his right to challenge, he got a number of 
Presbyterians on the jury, knowing they were strict observers of 
the Sabbath. Having produced his testimony, he freely admitted 
that he went home from court -on the Sabbath, but in his defence 
he said, ' The court at Guildhall sat so late on Saturday I had not 
time to go home that evening. The next morning I found that 
there was no public worship in the town of W., where I lodged on 
Saturday night. It being my custom to attend church on Sabbath, 
I came to Barnet to worship with the Presbyterians, whom I know 
to be sound in the faith and right in practice, and to hear their 
intelligent and pious pastor preach. But I was disappointed, for 
when I came to their church door I found that their worthy minis- 
ter was officiating out of town that day. I was then half way 
home, and instead of returning to the place whence I came that 
morning, I went home, knowing my residence was in a better place 
than the wicked Voww of W., where there is no church, no clergy- 
man, no public worship, )io Sabbath and no religion.' The court 
having heard his witnesses and defence, immediately withdrew the 
action and discharged him from arrest. He then generously enter- 
tained the court and company at his own expense." 



GEN. SETH CUSHMAN. 

By Wm. Heywooi). 

GP^N. CUSHMAN'S family have all pas.sed away, and it is .so 
long since he died that I cannot get the particulars as to 
many of the incidents of his life. I was well acquainted with him 
for about fifteen years preceding his death. I have lately seen the 
headstone at Gen. Cushman's grave in the burying ground in the 



l6 PIONEERS OF THE UAR 

southerly part of Guildhall, and it has upon it this inscription : 
"Gen. Seth Cushman, died i8th March, 1845, aged 63 years." It 
is known that he was born in Connecticut, but I do not know in 
what town. I have been told by him that he begun the practice of 
the law when quite young. I do not know with whom he studied 
law. He told me that he was a student for a time in the law 
school at Litchfield, Conn., which once had a great reputation, but 
does not now exist. Gen. Cushman must have resided at Guildhall 
about forty years, and for most of that time was in the practice of 
his profession. His father, Judge Isaac Cushman, resided on a 
large farm in the southerly part of Guildhall, and I think that Gen. 
Cushman went into practice at the village about the time that his 
father moved to the town, and niost likely came there on account 
of the residence of his father in town. His mother was a sister of 
Elijah Paine, United .States District Judge of Vermont. Gen. 
Cushman got his military title in the militia. He was, however, in 
the army a short time in the war of 181 2, and had a commission in 
a regimental staff. I do not know what the office was. He had a 
good deal of ambition for military display. About the time of the 
election of Gen. Jackson to the presidency. Gen. Cushman had the 
expectation that he should have some government office, and 
he moved to Montpelier, where he lived about a year. But the 
patronage did not come, and he moved back to Guildhall. During 
the anti-masonic excitement in Vermont, there were seven trials to 
elect a representative in congress for the fifth district, and Gen. 
Cushman was a candidate for several of the first trials on the side 
opposed to anti-masonry, and he came near being elected ; but on 
the seventh trial Gen. Cahoon of Lyndon was elected. 

Besides in his own county, Gen. Cushman attended the courts in 
Caledonia and Orleans counties in Vermont, and in Coos county in 
New Hampshire. He was usually engaged in all the important 
trials. He was a man of remarkable forensic talents. He was not 
a deep student of the law. He was too stirring and active in his 
habits to sit down and study books, but his knowledge was, as it 
were, intuitive and sufficient to manage a trial skillfully. I never 
knew a lawyer of more resources. His perceptions were quick. 
Almost without an effort he would understand a case, and I have 
known him to sit down to a jury trial without previous instruction, 
and gain a knowledge of it as the trial went along, and render as 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VEKMDNT. 1/ 

efood service as thouirh he had before known all al:)out it. He was 
an accomplished and eloquent adxocate. It was remarkable that 
he could not write an article for a newspaper or anything else very 
well, but when he spoke, as in addressini^ a jury or a court, he was 
a master of language, and what he said would read well, and much 
better than what he could deliberately write. 

He was very successful in criminal defences. I recollect that in 
a very important jury trial he and Judge John Mattocks were 
engaged in the defence, and Gen. Cushman made the opening 
argument. After he had closed. Judge Mattocks got up and said 
that Gen. Cushman had argued the case so well that he should do 
best not to weaken the effect of it by anything that he could say, 
and sat down. Gen. Cushman considered this a great compliment, 
as Judge Mattocks was an able lawyer. 

Gen. Cushman was a man of handsome presence and of gentle- 
manly manners. He was kind to and always ready to aid the 
younger members of the profession, and used to encourage them to 
go forward and argue their cases. He was a man of deep sympa- 
thies. He would aid a poor man, with no expectation of pay, with 
as much zeal as though he was sure of a large fee. His only care, 
in money matters, was to get it to use, and what he could earn 
went without much heed for the future. He was genial to and 
with his friends, and was kind and indulgent in his family. Guild- 
hall was and is yet a small village, and a very narrow field for an 
able lawyer with the talents of Gen. Cushman. He had the ability 
to have distinguished himself in a much greater field. But he had 
failings which were a clog upon his success. 

A year before his death he had a paralytic shock. And though 
he soon got up so as to be about the village, it was sad to see the 
man, once so able, a wreck of what he once was. At last he died 
suddenly of a second paralytic attack. 

He was a man in many ways to be admired. There are many 
who imitate his vices, and have not the excuse of his strong and 
excitable passions, and whose defects are not relieved by his talents 
or genial qualities. But I must heed the maxim that I shall wish 
to have charitably applied not long hence in m)' case : Dc moj-tiiis 
nil nisi boniim. 



1 8 PIONEERS OF THE BAR 

JAMES BELL. 

\'EKMONr Historical Gazetteer. 

JAMES BELL was born in Lyme, N. H., in December, 1776. 
John Austin, of pure Norman extraction, a native of Glasgow, 
Scotland, invented the tulip-shaped bell, for which he was knighted 
by Queen Elizabeth, and took the name of Bell. He was a staunch 
Presbyterian, and during the religious controversy was obliged to 
flee, and went to the North of Ireland. From thence a large fam- 
ily of brothers emigrated to the United States, and settled in vari- 
ous parts of the Union. James, the second son, settled in New 
Hampshire, from whom the subject of the following sketch de- 
scended. 

Not far from 1800 he went to reside in Hardwick, Vt., and was 
married to Lucy Dean of Hardwick, Mass., in iSoi. Soon after 
this he became entangled with a lawyer, for whom he had done 
business as a deputy sheriff. A legal quarrel arose which lasted 
for years ; litigation stripped him of his property and threatened to 
ruin him. The struggles of that season of his life required more 
courage than to fight with physical giants. The inevitable priva- 
tions of the early settlers ; the scarcity of provisions when the 
clearings were small and shaded by the thick forests which encir- 
cled them, so that the grain which had struggled through the sum- 
mer was likely to be nipped by untimely frosts ; the fearful drain 
upon pecuniary means and the excitement attendant upon litiga- 
tion ; the wants of a young family of children, whom he tenderly 
loved ; the pain to think that he had made the sharer of his trials a 
woman who had seen better days — a woman of the strictest princi- 
ples ambitious, and who must have been almost more than human 
to be always patient under the allotment of fortune, was enough to 
tempt a less buoyant spirit to do as another was advised to do when 
sorely tried. Still he never yielded, but rather pressed onward. 
The "divinity that shapes our ends" used this rough hewing as a 
means of showing to himself and others the talents that were in 
him. He became too poor to employ counsel, and was obliged to 
defend himself and plead his own causes, and soon displayed wit 
and a native eloquence which in those primitive times were more 
than a match for his mere legal antagonist. He eventually drove 
him from the field, and was ever afterward engaged in legal busi- 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. . 19 

ness thou-h not admitted to the bar for a number of years after. 
He settled in Walden in 1804 or 1805. In 18 10 he commenced 
the farm where he ever after lived. The place was entirely wild, 
and the first tree fallen was the foundation log on which his cabin 
was erected. In 181 5 he was elected to the State Legislature, 
after having had conferred on him the ofifice of justice of the peace, 
captain of 'militia, etc., which honors in those days were not with- 
out significance. He was again elected to the legislature in 18 18, 
and was a member of that body for ten years in succession. He 
was an eloquent debater, and few men had more influence in the 
house Few were there whose political sway was felt more through- 
out the state than Mr. Bell. At the time that Mr. Bell was admit- 
ted to the bar of Caledonia county, it was composed of a constel- 
ation of many of the first order of talents, among whom he was 
received as a peer, and in mother wit surpassed, perhaps, any one 
of them. Intellectual sport he enjoyed from the foundations of 
his being, and his irrepressible laughter was genial and sparkling 
as the bursting forth of sunshine. He, moreover, had an immense 
persuasive influence with a jury ; his sympathies being strong, he 
intuitively hit upon those points which would sway them in the di- 
rection he wished. The man was the man in his esteem, whatever 
the texture of his coat might be; his client's wrongs were his own 
wron-s, and he defended him with a zeal and enthusiasm that never 
flagged till his point was gained. He was a hard man to face, for 
perhaps when his legal antagonist had finished a labored plea and 
thought his mountain stood strong, a few playful sallies from Bell, 
or a stroke or two of the scalpel of satire directed to the weak 
points of his argument, and he would find the whole structure 
tumbling about his ears. 

A case of this kind occurred once, when he was attending court 
in a neighboring state, where he was a stranger. The counsel on 
the other side was a man of pretension, wealthy, influential, and 
much of an egotist. He made a great effort for his client, repre- 
sented the wrongs he had suffered as without a parallel, labored to 
excite the sympathy by the presentation of arguments drawn from 
no very apparent facts, and worked himself up to a very high point 
of commiseration for his much-abused client, and sat down. Mr. 
Bell arose with a very solemn face, but a queer twinkle ot the eye, 
and said he thought they would all feel it a privilege to join in sing- 



20 PIONEERS OF TilE BAR 

insr "Hark, from the tombs a doleful sound." He struck the old 
minor tune in which the words were then sun>j;, and sung the verse 
through. The speech of his opponent, in the minds of those pres- 
ent, was upon the poise between the pathetic and ridiculous — the 
ridicule flashed upon them, and the house was in a roar. When 
the merriment subsided he went on with his plea. The advocate 
who preceded him had indulged in invidious remarks, not only in 
reference to Mr. Bell, but to the Vermont bar generally, and Mr. 
Bell mentioned that he had been both surprised and pained at the 
ungentlemanly and narrow allusions which had been made by one 
who had the honor of belonging to one of the most liberal profes- 
sions in the world ; and the man afterwards ingenuously said that 
he never was so used up. 

In 1832 Mr. Bell made a public profession of religion, and joined 
the Congregational church in Hardwick, and was ever after a con- 
scientious and constant attendant at the sanctuary when his health 
permitted. He was a lover of freedom, and a hater of oppression. 
Well do we remember his relating the following anecdote : 

He was standing in front of the capitol at Washington, when a 
gang of slaves manacled together and driven by their keeper, 
passed by. When they came opposite the capitol they struck up 
" Hail, Columbia," and the refrain was kept up until their voices 
were lost in the distance. 

He said: "What a satire upon our brays of freedom was that 
music from those unconscious wretches ! Oh, how I longed to 
stand upon the floor of that house and say what I wanted to say." 
He was an earnest temperance advocate. During the political and 
other conflicts of his manhood he was a firm, warm friend, and a 
most whole-souled despiser of those he disliked ; but, as age ad- 
vanced, and the tumults of life receded, the affections became pre- 
dominant, and embraced all. His sporti\eness almost went with 
him to the grave. 

After he was so infirm that his step was almost as uncertain as 
an infant's, he said to some one, alluding to his infirmities, that 
there was one thing he could do as quick as ever. "And what is 
that .' " said the person addressed. " I can fall down as quick as 
ever I could! " was the answer. 

He was chosen a member of the council of censors in 1848, 
which was the last public service in which he engaged. There is 



OKI.EANS COUNTY, VEKMOXT. 21 

but one sketch of any of his public efforts remaining. That was 
reported by S. B. Colby, lisq., of Montpelier, and which we take 
the liberty to insert in this article. 

"Orleans County, December Term, A. D. 1847. Brother Bell 
has made one of his great speeches to-day in defence of Mrs. Han- 
nah Parker, on trial for the murder of her own child. I have 
never heard or felt a deeper pathos than the tones of his voice bore 
to the heart, as he stood up in the dignity of old age, his tall, 
majestic form over-leaning all the modern members of the bar (as 
if he had come from some superior physical generation of men) 
tremulous, slightly, with emotions that seemed thronging up from 
the long past, as the old advocate yielded for a moment to the 
effect of early associations, and introduced himself and his fallen 
brethren, whom his eye missed from their wonted seats, as it 
glanced along the vacant places inside the bar. He said : 

May it please Your Honor and Gentlemen of the Jury : 

I stood among giants, though not of them ; my comrades of the 
bar have fallen. Fletcher ! the untiring and laborious counselor, 
the persuasive advocate, the unyielding combatant, is where } 
Eternity echoes, here ! Cushman, the courtly and eloquent lawyer, 
the kind and feeling man, the polished and social companion and 
friend, where now is he .' The world unseen alone can say. 

Mattocks lives, thank God ; but is withdrawn from professional 
toil, from the clash of mind on mind, the combat of intellect and 
wit, the flashing humor and grave debates of the court room, to 
the graceful retreat of domestic life. I am alone, an old tree, 
stripped of its foliage, and tottering beneath the rude storms of 
seventy winters ; but lately prostrate at the verge of the grave, I 
thought my race was run ; never again did I expect to be heard in 
defence of the unfortunate accused. But heaven has spared me, 
another monument of his mercy, and I rejoice in the opportunity 
of uttering, perhaps, my last public breath in defence of the poor, 
weak, imbecile prisoner at the bar. 

Gentlemen, she is a mother. She is charged with the murder 
of her own child. She is arraigned here a friendless stranirer. 
She is without means to reward counsel, and has not the intelli- 
gence, as I have the sorry occasion to know, to dictate to her coun- 
sel a single fact relating to her case. I have come to her defence 
4 



22 PIONEERS OF THE BAR 

vvithiiut hojje of reward ; for she has nothing to give but thick, 
dark poverty, and of that, too, I have had more than enough. But 
it giv'es me pleasure to say that the stringent hardships of her case 
have won her friends among strangers, and the warm sympathies 
which have been extended to my client, and the ready and useful 
aid I have received during this protracted trial from various mem- 
bers of the bar, strongly indicate the great hearts and good minds 
of my departed brothers, have left their influence upon these, their 
successors." 

Soon after Mr. Bell's return from court he received the following 
from Mattocks : 

Peacham, January i6th, 1847. 

Brother Bell: — In the Watchman I have just seen a specimen of your speech 
in the murder case. It is worthy of being inserted in the next edition of " Elegant 
Extracts in Prose." Sir, you are the last of the Mohicans and the greatest, and when 
you die (which I fear will be soon, for from the account I hear of your effort in the 
cause of humanity it was all but a superhuman brightening before death), the 
tribe will be e.vtinct. You have justly called our two lamented friends giants, and 
with the discrimination of a reviewer, have given to each the distinguishing traits 
of excellence ; and although your introducing me with them was gratuitous, it was 
kind, and the traits you have given me I owe to your generosity. You say "I 
was not of them ; " this was a fiction, used in an unlawyerlike manner to prevent 
self-commendation, unless, indeed, you meant as Paul might have said, that he 
was not of the prophets, because he was a head and shoulders above them. I am 
proud that you have sustained and surpassed the old school of lawyers. Sir, you 
are the Nestor of the bar, and may be truly called the " Old man eloquent." 
I am, sir, with the greatest respect. 

Your friend and humble servant, 

John Mattocks. 

N. B. I reserve the all-important part of this letter to stand by itself. Let us 
hold fast to our hope in Christ. We near the brink. 

Bell survived his friend a few years, encompassed with inhnnity, 

and died of paralysis April 17th, 1852. 



ISAAC FLETCHER, 

By Hon. Is.vac F. Kedi'ielu. 

IN attem])ting to combine, in a connected narrative, some of the 
leading incidents in the life of Gen. Fletcher, I have, I trust, 
been influenced more by a desire to do justice to an eminent 
instance of self-made excellence, in literary and professional pur- 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 23 

suits, and thereby to countenance and encourage the friendless and 
fortuneless adventurer in that field, than by any wish to gratify 
feelings of friendship, kindly remembrance, or grateful affection, 
either in myself or others ; although, I confess, this last considera- 
tion has not been without its weight with me. Nor do I feel that 
my position, in this attempt, requires of me to subscribe implicitly 
to the necessity of the maxim — //// dc mortitis nisi bonitni. It will 
be my endeavor, so far as I shall sjjeak of his course of life, his 
princijiles and his character, to speak, as nearl)' as I shall know, 
the plain, simple truth. 

Gen. Fletcher was born, of respectable parents, in Dunstable, 
Mass., on the twenty-second day of November, 1784. His father 
was of the substantial class of farmers of that day, which, it will 
be remembered, equalled, if not excelled, almost all others in the 
essentials of prosperity and comfort, including competency of 
worldly possessions, health of body, sobriety and independence. 
'Fhe father continued to a green old age, and had but just put off 
the harness, so to speak, when his son was called to join him in the 
silent congregation. His mother, whose maiden name was Cum- 
mings, was always delicate and feeble, and survived the birth of her 
son but some twelve or fourteen years. She seems to have been a 
woman of gentleness and refinement of feeling, as well as of deli- 
cacy of physical constitutition, and these qualities of the mother 
seem to have been early developed and matured in the son. 

In a brief sketch of the incidents of his early life, drawn out by 
Gen. Fletcher, not many years before his death, for the sole use of 
his son, who was his only child, and which was not by him, in any 
sense, expected ever to meet the public eye, although written at a 
time when the state of his health doubtless admonished him that 
the term of his active life could not be very much protracted, he 
says : " From my earliest recollection, my constitution and health 
have been feeble, and have continued so to the present time, but 
yet able to endure much application, labor and fatigue." It seems 
by this narrative, which his son has kindly put into my hands, that 
just before his mother's death it was arranged that he should receive 
a collegiate education. " But after her decease," says Gen. Fletcher, 
" my father thought himself unable to defray the expense of my 
education, and it was given up." He now devoted himself to those 
avocations which are common when one proposes to become a 



24 



PIONEERS OF THE BAR 



farmer, which is indeed the pursuit of all others in our country, 
perhaps, best calculated to bring comfort and contentment, but 
which is not as likely to induce a deep insight into those more diffi- 
cult studies which enlarge and fortify the intellectual powers. The 
rigid economy of those days, as contrasted favorably with our own 
times, in some respects, is no doubt fairly illustrated by the follow- 
ing incident, found in the narrative alluded to : "One rule of my 
father's economy was, that all the money spent by his children 
must be earned by themselves. By the greatest industry, in raising 
potatoes and tobacco, I possessed myself of money enough to buy 
Pike's large arithmetic, and commenced the study of it, without 
master or assistant, during the leisure evenings I could spare. By 
dint of perseverance, I mastered every rule and could solve any 
problem in the whole book. This laid a foundation for mathemati- 
cal studies, which has been of use to me through life. I have ever 
devoted myself (when opportunity would allow), with more pleasure 
to the study of that science than of any other." 

I cannot learn that Gen. Fletcher was, at any period of his life, 
fond of those athletic sports which formed so large a portion of the 
amusement of the young in that day. The deficiency of physical 
strength requisite to excel in them, and the absence of that excess- 
ive flow of animal spirits, which is so constantly outbreaking in the 
robust and hardy youth, whose health is properly cared for, might 
well account for this. He was not, however, reared in effeminate 
indulgence. His father was not a man to encourage exemption 
from toil and discipline, which — however it may seem to the youth- 
ful experimenter — is the more indispensable in proportion to the 
original feebleness of constitutional health. Not that a constitu- 
tion of extreme delicacy can be, with safety, subjected to the same 
process of training, which might suit one of more primitive hardi- 
hood, but the former must have exposure and labor and infliction, 
as it can endure them, in order to produce that degree of energy 
which is indispensable to comfort and usefulness, while the more 
healthful and robust will endure long without these aids. Hence it 
is no doubt true that the selecting of the frailest, sickliest son, for 
the pursuits of learning in the liberal arts and professions, because 
he is less fitted by nature for more laborious avocations, is almost 
always unfortunate. If the opposite course were pursued both 
classes would be made more useful, and far more sure of success 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 2$ 

and CDiiifort mi the last tjiiarter of life's full term. It was no 
doubt, in some degree, owing to the fact that Gen. Fletcher was 
kept at home on his father's farm till his nineteenth year, and 
taught the value of time and mone\-, and not to shrink from labor 
and toil and suffering even, if need be, that he was enabled to 
accomplish so much in after life with so little sound health. 

He says : " In 1803 my father came to a resolution to suffer me 
to acquire a liberal education. He informed me that all he could 
do for me was to give me my time, and if I thought, by industry 
and economy, I could succeed in the attempt, I might make the 
experiment, but should I fail, there would always be a seat at his 
table and food enough, and work enough for me to do on his farm. 
Thus encouraged and supported by my father, I collected all my 
movable effects, consisting of clothes and a few books, and left 
home, with a fixed and determined resolution to ta.x my genius and 
industry to the utmost to acquire an education. With budget in 
hand I took oiy departure for Groton to prepare for college. At 
this time I was possessed of a yoke of o.xen," (which, as he had 
before related, his father suffered him to buy, when young, in a 
mode similar to that by which he obtained his arithmetic), "a few 
sheep and other property, in all, to the amount of about one hun- 
dred and fifty dollars, which I converted into cash and funded, to 
tlraw upon as necessity might require. I did not feel myself able 
to take board near the academy, but at the distance of a mile and a 
half, where I could get it cheaper than in the village. I commenced 
fitting for college in September, 1803, and entered the Freshman 
class in Dartmouth College in 1804. I may as well say, once for 
all, my feelings suffered much, for my means were scanty and my 
dress and style humble." 

I have introduced this long extract from his narrative to his son, 
because I am well advised that he considered that portion of his 
life as having had an important bearing and a controlling infiuence 
upon much of his after life, and in no slight degree connected with 
what of success attended his after efforts, and because I cannot but 
esteem such a testimony, from such a source, of the very highest 
importance to all who feel themselves interested in the subject of 
the education of children, physical and moral, as well as intellect- 
ual. In this day of comparative profusion and love of ostentation 
among all classes, and of inefficiency and want of energy and self- 



26 PIONEERS OF THE HAR 

reliance, if not sometimes of vicious delicacy and effeminacy, among 
too many of our youth, when even the aspirants for professional or 
literary honors dare not venture — upon their own resources, with 
the common blessings of a gracious Providence — the undertaking, 
in this land of plenty and cheapness, to compass a collegiate and 
professional education, I have hoped that such testimony, from 
such a source, will not be esteemed obtrusive or unimportant. And, 
both because it is better said and more likely to be regarded, I have 
introduced it in the very words of the witness himself. 

There is to be noted in the above extract the countenance and 
support which a judicious father may give to a son, eager for an 
education, aside from, and far more valuable, I apprehend, than the 
giving of money. 

1. By cultivating in the son, in some sense, the feeling that he 
is his own master, and this at an early age, that there may be 
nothing ever of the feeling of ser\'itude in what he does for 
the father. 

2. By suffering the son to acquire a little property of his own 
by extraordinary exertion and more than usually rigid economy, 
which will show him the value of small earnings, and how it is pos- 
sible, by little and little, to accomplish in time what at first seemed 
wholly desperate. 

3. By sustaining the son's hope and heart, by permitting him 
always to feel that his father's house is a resort to fly for shelter in 
case of disaster and discomfiture in his undertaking, and that even 
in that event he need not feel himself disgraced, or as having 
thereby forfeited the good will of the family mansion, or of its pro- 
prietor and inmates. 

There is also farther to be noted here, how very little aid is, in 
our country, indispensable to the attainment of a collegiate educa- 
tion ; for Gen. Fletcher passed his regular course at Dartmouth 
College without any aid, as far as is known, except what is above 
named. He maintained a high standing for scholarship, as his 
appointment at commencement, and his election to the Phi Beta 
Kappa Society, Junior year, will attest. 

I know it has now become fashionable at old Dartmouth to decry 
all distinctive appointments in college as something addressing 
itself too much to the more debasing motives of human action ; 
and it is said the venerable society of the Phi Beta Kappa has fallen 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 27 

into melancholy disrepute there, and has sometimes been almost 
compelled "to hide its diminished head, and peep about to find 
itself a dishonorable grave." But this is no time to write a disser- 
tation upon college honors and preferments ; and least of all should 
one, whose life has been devoted to other pursuits, presume to 
arraign the venerable teachers and patrons of his Ahna Mater — a 
nursing mother, of whom it pleases me to be able to say, with the 
utmost truth and sincerity, "I lo\'e thee still." But I may be 
allowed kindly to suggest that in the general rush among all classes 
and associations, to try some new medicine for an old disease — 
inordinate love of pre-eminence, with mediocrity of capacity — it 
was to have been hoped that our institutions of learning should be 
permitted to wait patiently, to learn whether " the sober second 
thought of the people" — no unmeaning catchword, though greatly 
reviled of late — would seriously and pertinaciously require any such 
remedy from that quarter. So venerable an institution of learning, 
instead of running after the popular breath — the mere efferves- 
cence of that staid, sober, and well informed public opinion, which 
we all feel bound to regard as the true exponent of the vox populi 
vox Dei — should, it would seem, have felt in some degree the 
responsibility of making the substance of public opinion, instead 
of running after its shadow. And perhaps when we all learn to 
feel the full weight of this just and reasonable responsibility, there 
will be more true devotion to the interests of the whole, and, of 
course, less necessity for high sounding pretension in that respect 
— more practice and less profession of democracy. 

Gen. Fletcher, during his college life, in common with most of 
the members of college of that day, taught school during the win- 
ter months. It is probable that this exercise, if entered upon with 
a proper sense of its real dignity and importance, instead of being 
made, as it too often is, a ]:)ainful shift to gain a subsistence, would 
always be found more profitable to the teacher, on the score of 
mental improvement alone, than the same time devoted to the 
study of books. It was so with him. The difference between these 
two classes of teachers, in the improvement of their pupils, is 
almost incalculable. The education of men, full grown men, good 
soldiers in the warfare of life, is no mere child's play. It is work 
for valiant men. "There is no royal road to geometry" — the 
advance along the way towards any high attainment in liberal 



28 riONEI'.KS Ol nil KAK 

Studies is always anluous, often painfully difficult and dishearten- 
ing, even to the most devotcil lovers of good learning. (len. 
Fletcher w-as always a faithful instructor. I apprehend there would 
be no danger of doing injustice to others in asserting that almost 
no office in the state afforded so faitliful and thorough a course of 
law education and of systematic instruction as did his. dming the 
whole course of his professional life. 

After leaving college Gen. Fletcher taught in the academy in 
Chesterfield. N, H.. with high credit, as a faithful and comiK'tent 
teacher, for two years. It was during this time that he made the 
acquaintance of Miss Abigail Stone, whom he subsequently mar- 
ried, and who survived her husband, but in great feebleness and 
premature decreptitudc. caused soon ;ifter the birth of her only 
child by a severe sickness, consequent upon too early exposure, 
without proper precaution. The calamity was severely felt by both. 
1 learn from those who were intimate with Mrs. F^lctcher, before 
the event, and who all concur in representing her as an active, ele- 
gant and accomplisheii woman, both in person and mind, that she 
then suflfered a most painful change. I have alluded to this sad 
result, thus in detail, in order to do justice to a trait in Gen. 
Fletcher's domestic character, which I esteem above all praise. I 
mean his truthfvdness. amstancy and devotion to the wife of his 
choice, through all times and .all changes — never in the least abating 
the w.itchfulness and tenderness of his first love, through long 
vears of weariness and suffering, on her part, anil almost necessarv 
dej)artures sometimes from that evenness and equanimity which 
vigorous health and buo}-ant spirits, with the consciousness of 
being useful, and necessary to the amifort of her husband — would 
not have failed to preserve, I know that the self-confident and 
boastful in regard to hvmian virtue, who know little of themselves 
and less of others, will be ready to say " he could hardly have done 
less." But when we reflect how very few wives, among the most 
fortunate, after the freshness of youthfid beauty has grown dim. 
and the disregard consequent upon familiarity, with even our best 
friends, has come over them, receive all that attention always from 
their cv>m^vuiions which their .affection covets, I feel constraineti to 
say that in my judgment such instances as that to which 1 have 
alludetl are rare indeeil, and to be estivmetl in proi>ortion as they 
are few. Those men who think lichtlv of such virtues on the one 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 29 

hand, and those on the other who think that no degree of virtue is 
of any esteem, unless it has assumed a prescribed degree of preten- 
sion, and who will consequently think and speak of Gen. Fletcher 
as a moral man, perhaps, but not religious, would find, very likely, 
this practical lesson in his life not unworthy of their study — which 
might enable them to see whether virtue is not something more 
substantial than mere pride, and whether, at the last, " He who 
seeth not as man seeth," will not esteem a life of virtue of more 
avail towards the attainment of everlasting salvation even, than an 
empty faith without its legitimate fruits — a holy and virtuous life. 
I shall not be understood in what I here say, I trust, as to any 
extent willing to countenance a disregard of the ordinances of our 
holy religion. Few men, perhaps, respect them more sincerely ; 
but they are rather the body than the soul of religion — the means 
rather than the fruits of piety. 

As to Gen. Fletcher's religious views and feelings. For upon 
this point, if I said anything, I would be sorry to misrepresent him, 
or to be misunderstood myself. The first paragraph in a letter 
under date of December, 1838, having been written in the confi- 
dence of long standing and intimate friendship, growing out of a 
remote family connection and similarity of pursuits, will exhibit his 
views upon that subject more fully and far more satisfactorily than 
I could do, and may in some degree explain why I should have 
spoken thus confidently of his Christian character, when he himself 
is not known to have expressed any full reliance upon his own 
hopes. And I have been the more assured upon this point of his 
character, perhaps, from the consideration that in religious profes- 
sions the more bold and confident, not seldom, give comparatively 
little evidence of having well considered the ground of their faith 
and hope, while on the other hand, many times, the more doubting, 
and anxious, and self-condemning, and shrinking from the public 
gaze, show more of the peaceable fruits of righteousness in humil- 
ity, self-abasement, and holy living. The late Dr. William Ellery 
Channing, the worthy descendant of a worthy ancestor, whose 
name he bore, very justly said that all deep, impassioned feeling 
upon religious subjects is shy and shrinking, and difficult of utter- 
ance. The paragraph above referred to is as follows : 



30 PIONEERS OF THE BAR 

Washington, D. C, December 9th, 1838. 
I thank you for your kind letter of the 3d instant. It is gratifying, and doubly 
so when at a distance, to be remembered by our friends. The mention of the old 
court room at Danville brought to my recollection many reminiscences. It is 
there I have toiled hard day after day ; it is there I have passed the best of my 
life ; it is there that the malady, which has afflicted me for more than two years, 
first came upon me ; in short, it is in that very room, and in preparing to appear 
in it, that I have worn away my health, and broken down my constitution. It is 
there I have passed days of great toil and mental anxiety. Thanks to Providence, 
I feel my health gradually returning. Ever since I came south I find my health 
amending, and I pray God that it may be ultimately restored. The religious cast 
of your letter, while it was somewhat unexpected to me, was by no means displeas- 
ing. Believe me, my dear friend, I have ever esteemed my friends the higher, in 
proportion as I have thought them sincerely religious. I have never considered 
myself deserving of the name of Christian, but it is a subject that engages my 
daily meditations. How beautiful the rhapsody of St. Paul: "I have fought a 
good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith, henceforth there is 
laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, 
shall give me at that day ; and not to me only, but unto all them, also, that love 
his appearing." How different from that of Balaam : " Let me die the death of 
the righteous, and let my last end be like his." One full of holy confidence, the 
other full of worldly hope. May you and I love the appearing of the righteous 
judge, which is the earnest of the heavenly crown. 

Gen. Fletcher studied the profession of the law with Messrs. 
Prcscott and Dunbar, at Keene, N. H., and was admitted to the 
bar of the county court in Newfane, Vt., at the December term, 
181 1. In 1 81 2 he opened an office in Lyndon, where he continued 
to devote himself to the business and study of his profession till 
near the close of his life. He was married sometime during the 
year 18 13. 

The life of a professional man is almost always barren of inci- 
dent. It consists of a dead uniformity of labor and study, and 
study and labor, in nearly constant alternations, at least to those 
who choose to submit to such alternatives. Professional learning- 
is always, and with all men, difficult of attainment, and only the 
fruit of long and patient .study. Industry, determined resolution 
and capacity, will always ensure success, and all these Gen. Fletcher 
possessed, but not in equal 'degrees. His industry and perseverance, 
as well as his promptness and faithfulness, in all which pertained 
to professional responsibility, were almost without a parallel. His 
capacity was certainly of a very high order, although not perhaps 
of the very highest. It was just about that fortunate degree of 



OKLF.ANS COUNTV, VKKMONT. 3 1 

excellence, which feels its cai)ability of masterint;- all problems, 
which the variety of professional avocations present by dint of 
labor and study, and not that flowing blaze of inspiration, so to 
speak, which despises the trammels and restraints of rules, and 
detests the slow and snail-like pace by which patient industry must 
ascend, if at all, to those higher points in professional attainments, 
to which mere genius can never reach. 

When he entered the practice he was considered, I apprehend, 
more learned and critical than, with the same attainments, he would 
now be esteemed. This difference in the taste of the profession, 
together with his great industry and indomitable perseverance, gave 
him then, no doubt, at times the appearance of hypercriticism. But 
this, in a young attorney, is justly esteemed "a failing which leans 
to virtue's side," and is one of the most hopeful of excesses, as 
Gen. Fletcher's after success sufificiently shows. He very soon 
commanded an extensive practice in the three northeastern coun- 
ties, which he maintained without abatement and with increasing 
popularity till about the time of his election to congress, when he 
wholly abandoned all professional undertakings. This long contin- 
ued and constantly advancing popularity, in the advocacy of the 
profession, is not without its parallel indeed, in eminent instances, 
in our own state, and in the same region, but it certainly is very 
uncommon in proportion to the whole number of acceptable, and 
even popular advocates, who, in almost any section of the state are, 
at some one period during the term of twenty-five years, to be 
found in successful practice for a time, perhaps, and then give place 
to other popular favorites ; and this result in his professional course 
is, in itself, no doubtful evidence of his excellence as an advocate. 
His practice, too, was of a kind which brought him constant acqui- 
sitions, and his charges were generally low — always reasonable — 
which enabled him to derive more jDrofit, in the long run, from the 
same client, than if his demands had been more exorbitant. He 
was often called to advocate causes in more remote sections of 
the state, (if not in other states, of which I cannot speak), and was 
always a happy and persuasive speaker. His sudden and extempo- 
raneous efforts, although often-times showy and attractive, were not 
his happiest or most successful efforts. He required time to collect 
his materials, and then to arrange and digest and condense them ; 
and in such cases he was always a graceful and interesting, and 



32 PIONEERS OF THE BAR 

more than ordinarily successful advocate. His great love of method, 
and minute subdivision of his toioics, not unfrequently exposed him 
to severe criticism as being over-technical, and sometimes frivolous 
in his exceptions to the propositions of his adversary, as well as in 
the outworks with which he essayed to defend his own citadel ; but 
the far more than ordinary, I may say, eminent success which 
attended his almost continued efforts at the bar, addressed both to 
court and jury, show very clearly that he was more easily criticised 
than overthrown. All will allow that he has left behind him a very 
enviable professional reputation, and one which those of us who 
come after him will do well to emulate in more than one particular. 
It is true, doubtless, that from the relations which subsisted between 
us for nearly half the term of his professional life, I should be lia- 
ble to over-estimate his powers of advocacy. But I have guarded 
against that as I best could, and I flatter myself that those who 
knew him as well as I did, will not find much to blame in what I 
have written. His reputation stands, and must stand, mainly upon 
his professional attainments. 

His surprising industry in the preparation of his cases is well 
shown by the number and extent of the briefs which he made 
while in practice. Almost all the important cases, for the prosecu- 
tion or defence of which he stood primarily or principally respon- 
sible, both in the county and supreme courts, were formally prepared 
by stitching together the requisite number of sheets of letter paper 
and writing at the head of each page, or at other convenient dis- 
tances, the prominent points in the case, in orderly succession, then 
the subdivisions of the several leading points, if any, and the 
authorities relied upon in their support, and, if a jury trial, the 
names of the witnesses to be called, and the substance of the testi- 
mony expected from them. If the trial was had before the jury, he 
used his brief in opening the case. He then took very full minutes 
of the testimony given, and, in summing up, referred both to his 
brief and minutes. ' His briefs were many times prepared with 
such accuracy and minuteness as to have enabled an English bar- 
rister to conduct the trial without embarrassment. If this prepara- 
tion of cases before trial was more attended to in our courts, it 
would greatly facilitate the labors both of the court and counsel, 
and in no small degree conduce to the just ends of the administra- 
tion of justice — the imjiartial understanding and thorough trial, 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 33 

and speedy determination of causes. Protracted Iiti<;ation, which 
all concur in condemning as a bitter evil, and \vhicl> has been 
attributed sometimes to the interested policy of counsel, and some- 
times, no doubt with some show of justice, to the inefficiency of 
courts, is perhaps as much induced b}- the want of preparation of 
cases on the part of counsel, and the impatience of courts, (par- 
donable it might seem, if ever, under such painful perplexities), as 
by either of the former causes. Gen. Fletcher seldom found a case 
taking a direction on trial which he had not anticipated and pro- 
vided against, as he best could. 

He continued his classical reading through life to such extent as 
the other calls upon his time would permit. He read his fav'orite 
Latin authors with ease and satisfaction, and became, late in life, a 
considerable proficient in the study of the French language. His 
own testimony shows that he retained a still livelier relish for his 
mathematical, than for his classical studies, even. 

He was often called to address his fellow citizens on anniversary 
festivals and other occasions, and sometimes, also, the literary soci- 
eties in our colleges. Some of these addresses have been published. 
One of these, delivered many years since on commencement at the 
University of Vermont, (of whose board of trust he was at the time 
a member), was very favorably received. He did not abandon those 
studies as unimportant to the main object of his ambition — profes- 
sional eminence ; nor did the comparative disuse of the offices of 
Apollo and the Muses render him so coy and bashful and blushing, 
in the presence of those more at home there, as to induce him to 
forego all efforts in that way. 

I come now to speak of Gen. Fletcher's political character. And 
here, I confess, I feel some little difficulty in determining ]-)recisely 
what rank to assign him. I do not think politics a field in which 
he ever took delight, or where he was fitted to shine. His kindli- 
ness of temper, his unwillingness to wound or offend the feelings 
of others, his peculiar sensitiveness under any imputation or sus- 
picion of wrong inflicted or intended by him, his total want of all 
that bravado and bluster, which are so necessary, sometimes, to 
keep up appearances on the arena of politics, made him averse to 
the scenes which are there exhibited. I do not find that he ever 
made the science of government, at any period in his life, a leading 
study. I apjirehend that he never ]iosscssed that adroitness and 



34 PIONEERS OF THE EAR 

tact in anticipating and foiling the false positions of an antagonist, 
which woukl have rendered him a dexterous and successful political 
leader. He was, I think, more fitted to work out a given problem 
than to propose a theory — more suited to the sphere of a subordi- 
nate, and to the mere detail of the duties of public life, than either 
to originate or improve systems. His course of life and habits of 
thought and study enabled him to select the wisest means for 
accomplishing a required end, and to urge the most plausible and 
persuasive reasons for pursuing that end, rather than for determin- 
ing absolutely whether, in every point of view, the end proposed 
was the very wisest and best which could be adopted. And having 
said this, I feel bound also to say that I believe Gen. Fletcher to 
have always been sincere in his political opinions and party prefer- 
ences, to have been an original and honest-hearted democrat, a 
friend of the people from feeling, habit and education. He was 
also conservative in his opinions, and, from principle, averse to 
great and sudden changes in the established institutions of the 
country, unless for sufficient reasons. But I do not think he had 
any such fearfulness and timidity in regard to change as would 
have led him to oppose reasonable changes, with a probable chance 
of improvement. Had he made politics a leading object of his 
ambition at an earlier period in life, the estimate of his political 
character must have been very different. But the public offices 
which he held were rather incidental to the main course of his pro- 
fessional life, and not expected or intended to divert him from that 
course, if we except his election to congress in the fall of the year 
1836. And at this time even, the unfortunate attacks of epilepsy, 
which finally terminated his life, had already begun to impair the 
health of his body and the tone of his mind. He did, nevertheless, 
continue to discharge his duties in congress for two terms, until 
March, 1841, with very general acceptance. His health was such 
that he performed the duty required of him on various committees 
with credit, and was, for some time, chairman of one of the less 
important ones. But before the close of the last term, it was but 
too painfully evident to his intimate friends that the health of his 
body and the symmetry of his mind were broken down, and that 
soon "the wheel mu.st be broken at the cistern." From this till 
the time of his death, October 19th, 1842, he was almost wholly 
unable to go abroad, or to engage in active labor. 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VEKMONT. 35 

In rej^ard to his political character and feeliny;s, too, I would 
be sorry that anythin-;;, in my present position or recent pursuits, 
should, in fact, or in the apprehension of any one, so far suppress 
any expression of opinion by him upon the points of difference 
between himself anej the opposing political party, as by imi^lication 
to leav^e the impression that they either did not exist, or were by 
him considered unimportant — which might subject Gen. Fletcher 
to the unjust suspicion of esteeming those matters wholly indiffer- 
ent which others esteem of the gravest import — or else of being 
more yielding in his opinions and preferences than would wholly 
consist with personal independence and self-respect, in which essen- 
tial ingredients of character he was by no means deficient. 

About 1823 he was, for a number of successive elections, the 
member of our house of representatives from Lyndon, and, at 
the time of his retiring from that body, the speaker, the duties 
of which office he discharged with general acceptance, although 
with no such eminent success as attended his efforts at the bar. 
Those who were members at the same time, and who witnessed his 
efforts while on the floor of the house, generally considered that his 
addresses there were creditable, but from his prominent posi- 
tion, perhaps, he felt called upon to address the house too often, 
and upon too various topics, to acquire much fame as a debater. 
This, to those of us who know him to have been, constitutionally, 
an exceedingly timid and diffident man, may seem not a little out 
of keeping with his general character. But it is not unlikely his 
timidity may have, in some degree, contributed to produce that 
evil. It very often requires more firmness of nerve to keep silence 
when one's position seems to require him to speak, than to speak. 

I cannot better illustrate the comparative excellence of his extem- 
poraneous efforts on the floor of the house, and those of a profes- 
sional forensic character, made on mature preparation, than by 
alluding to one of his arguments before the house of representatives 
in the case of Norman Cleveland, who had been convicted of 
murder in the county of Orleans and sentenced to suffer death. 
His friends joined him in petitioning the legislature for a commu- 
tation of his punishment. By permission. Gen. Fletcher appeared 
as his counsel at the bar of the house of representatives. The 
former respectability of Cleveland, who was at the time of his arrest 
a physician in considerable ]iractice in the shire of the county, and 



36 PIONEERS OF THE BAK 

connected by marriage with some of the most influential and respect- 
able families in that portion of the state, and some little irregulari- 
ties, which were alleged to have occurred in the trial of the cause, 
conspired to throw around this case, at the time, a very unusual 
degree of interest. Mr. Fletcher's argument, happily combining 
these extraneous and incidental sources of interest with the palli- 
ating circumstances of the case, in regard to the real motive which 
induced the homicide, was said by those who listened to its delivery 
to have produced very great effect. The punishment of death was 
commuted to that of imprisonment in the state prison for the term 
of five years. 

He was military aid to His E.xcellency Richard Skinner during 
his term of office, and for many years adjutant and inspector gen- 
eral of the Vermont militia, both which offices he discharged with 
credit. In this last capacity he was in attendance upon His E.xcel- 
lency C. P. Van Ne.ss during the visit of the venerable Lafayette to 
this state, and was by that worthy patriot made the dispenser of 
his bounty, by which the aged Gen. Barton was relieved from his 
imprisonment for debt in the common jail in Danville. 

I have thus briefly sketched the outlines of the life and character 
of one who was my friend, and, in some sense, my early patron. I 
can only add that he was an indulgent parent, a kind-hearted 
friend, charitable to all, unwilling to offend or pain any one, hos- 
pitable and generous, and accomplished more for good and less for 
evil, I think, than most others. " Et ipse qnidcm, quanqiiam medio 
inspatio intcgrce cEtatis etcptus, quantum ad gloriam, longissimum 
cevum peregit. Quippe et vera bona, qua in virtiite sita sunt, im- 
pleverat." 

EPHRAIM PADDOCK. 

By Elisha May, Esij. 

ElilRAIM PADDOCK was born January 4, 17S0, and died at 
.St. Johnsbury, Vt., July 27, 1859. He married Abbie Phelps 
November 2, 1807. She was born August 2, 17S6, and died July i, 
i860. They had two children — Horace, who for many years was 
one of the most esteemed citizens of St. Johnsbury, and Charlotte, 
who was the wife of the Rev. W. W. Thayer, the librarian at the athe- 
naeum of the same town. Mr. Paddock was elected judge of the su- 



(IKLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. n 

prcme court in 1828, and held that office until 1831. Such, in brief, is 
the history of this eminent lawyer ; it is almost all that can be told 
of the men of the legal profession everywhere. 

The law reports and court records contain the principal results of 
such men's labors. They do not seek to shine anywhere save in 
their profession. Living in retirement quite a part of their lives, 
their fellow men, in fact, know but little about them. 

Judge Paddock was never a brilliant man. He possessed but few 
of those qualities in debate that made Mattocks, Bell, and Cushman 
famous. He had other qualities of a great lawyer which those men 
did not possess, particularly the last two. 

Industrious, honest and fair, the briefs and opinions of Judge 
Paddock show careful study and good discrimination. We find the 
first opinion of the subject of this sketch in 2 Vt. Rep., p. 39, Wil- 
liams vs. Hicks, in which the court were brought face to face with 
the recent questions of patent rights, and promissory note given 
for same. That case and the following ones contain references to 
the English authorities, with which the author was plainly familiar. 

At this time, 1829, we had few Vermont authorities upon most 
questions of law. Many states that have now excellent reports then 
had none. Massachusetts had issued the 6th volume of Pick- 
ering, Maine the 5th, and New Hampshire the 4th volume of 
reports. New York had more decided cases than any other state ; 
but there were no adjudications of many commercial and criminal 
questions. In equity the books were then well up. 

Vermont then needed, and she found judges well qualified to 
break up the ground for an excellent series of reports. Sound 
sense and correct information were found in the bench of 182S-31. 

We find the accomplished Prentiss, the solid Hutchinson, the 
sound Royce, the scholarly Williams, and the honest Paddock. 
Few of the cases decided in the 2d-3d Vermont Reports have been 
reversed or criticised. These men rode no hobbies. 

We are told that Judge Paddock preferred the work of practicing 
lawyer to that of the bench. He at once, after 1831, dropped back 
into his practice, and in 1852-53 we find him vigorously at work at 
the bar, settling the question of duties of listers, etc. — 24 Vt., 9. 

The older citizens of St. Johnsbury refer to Judge Paddock as 
one of the most urbane of men, kind to his family, doing all he 



38 PIONEERS OF THE BAR 

could to make society better, helping the young business men, and 
as greatly interested in the schools of the town. 

It is to men of his time — to the late Erastus, Thaddeus, and 
Joseph Fairbanks — this section of Vermont owes much. They saw 
the need, and furnished the means for obtaining a better education. 

Some of the beautiful trees that adorn Main street in the village 
of St. Johnsbury were planted by Judge Paddock. They form a 
fitting monument to his pure, happy and spotless life. 

That he was a student and lover of the law any person could 
easily determine by looking at the library he left, now for the most 
part in the possession of a distinguished judge of the supreme 
court. 

That he was a man of excellent spirit and business capacity the 
men of St. Johnsbury, who knew him intimately, all testify. 

Success, that he attained, was well deser\'ed. 

His portrait which now adorns the walls of the Caledonia county 
court room, is that of a plain, frank man ; while not handsome, it 
is manly and honest. 

THOMAS BARTLETT. 

By Hon. George N. Dale. 

THIS man, who in some respects was distinguished from all 
others, was a son of Thomas Bartlett. The latter was born 
in Plymouth, Mass., married Anna Little of Providence, R. I., and 
was one of the first settlers of Burke, Caledonia county, Vt., where 
the subject of this sketch was born in 1808, and where he received 
a common school educatron. He read law first with Hon. George 
C. Cahoon, and then with Hon. Isaac Fletcher — both of Lyndon — 
and was admitted to the bar in Caledonia county about 1835. 

He commenced practice in Groton, Vt., remaining two or three 
years, and then removed to Lyndon, where he resided until his 
death, having an office at St. Johnsbury the last two or three years 
of his life. September 13, 1835, he married Harriet Smith of 
Newbury. Only one of si.\ children survived childhood. This was 
Dr. H. C. Bartlett, a very popular young man, who, with his wife, 
was lost in the disaster to the steamer "Columbus." Mr. Bartlett 
(first named), was state's attorney in and for his county during the 
years 1839, 1841 and 1842. During those years he was rapidly ris- 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 39 

ing as a public speaker. His physical inability — a partial paralysis 
of an arm and leg, occasioned by over-exertion and exposure on the 
farm — instead of being a deformity, added much to his appearance 
and his presence, and commanded mingled charity and respect, and, 
in ]ileasing contrast with his large form and powerful voice, was of 
itself eloquent. Sympathy with him and unbounded admiration 
for his style of speaking was universal. No man ever lived more 
largely in the minds of his admirers than did Thomas Bartlett. He 
filled the whole circle of his friends with the brilliant light of a 
genius, warmed by a great soul filled with generous impulses, and 
(we must admit, but without apology), intense longings for fame. 

He was in the Vermont senate in 1S41, 1842 and 1843. As a 
senator he ranked high and became at once very popular, but here 
he was not in his element. He was too limited in his means of 
mental exercise. He felt the want of excitement. He represented 
the town of Lyndon in the general assembly in 1850, 1854 and 
1855. Here he found ample room for the exercise of all his facul- 
ties, and he improved his opportunities. Brought into more direct 
contact with the people, he soon became known and admired 
throughout the state. His keen sayings and clever illustrations 
were in the mouth of every one. He was representative in con- 
gress from 1851 to 1853, inclusive. 

As a legislator he was too little designing to appear himself 
prominent upon the record. He would not be inclined to originate 
any legislation with a view to personal credit, nor to identify him- 
self with it, nor with a purpose to honor himself thereby. But he 
made efforts in the state and national houses which rank among 
the finest ever made in either place — notably his scathing denunci- 
ation of the common school book steal in our state ; and an effort 
that forever silenced an arrogant and impudent fellow in congress. 

Nothing but a want of such discipline of the mind and polish as 
a liberal education would have afforded him prevented his standing 
alone and without a peer as a forensic orator, is the opinion of 
many who knew him. His reasoning was powerful and ingenious, 
but not systematic. In appearance he was tall — over six feet in 
physical stature — prominent lips, yet so compressed as to indicate 
great determination of purpose, and the keenest realization of the 
most trying emergency and a willingness to meet it. Thomas 
Bartlett was a man f)f that kind of swarthy complexion which with 



40 PIONEERS OF THE BAR 

long-neglected hair, beard and habit, would suggest desperation, but 
with his well shaved face, nicely trimmed hair, and neat, and when 
circumstances would permit, rich dress, it gave him an air very dis- 
tinguished and dignified. In voice, action and thought, he was 
bold, frank, and at times, terribly defiant. He was as tender- 
hearted, sensitive and sympathetic as a girl, and his palsied leg 
and arm were as eloquent as the rich tones of his heavy, yet 
pathetic voice, especially when defending the weak and abused. At 
the same time he had an unmeasured contempt for meanness, and 
could hate the man indulging in it with a hate that was more than 
a hate, against which, whenever and wherever personated, his voice 
rose as a terrific storm in terrible invective. His style was at times 
extravagant, but he was capable of the closest and clearest expressed 
logic. His analytical style of reasoning was almost a wonder, replete 
with unexpected pictures and startling illustrations, racy, and filled 
with bursts of thrilling eloquence. To example imperfect and 
faintly remembered instances : He was prosecuting a traveling 
circus, who traveled, advertised, and in every way held itself out 
as Sears & Co.'s circus, for so negligently putting up seats that 
plaintiff fell and was injured. The defendants claimed that the cir- 
cus belonged to a Mr. Faxon of Liverpool, and that he alone was 
responsible. Said the advocate : " Gentlemen, I have a dog, and 
a mean cur he is, too. He comes w-hen I whistle. He goes when 
I say 'ste-boy.' He follows me w^herever I go. ' T. Bartlett ' is 
marked on his collar. I am out with him on a day, and he raven- 
ously attacks my neighbor's sheep. I am called on for damages. 
I reply, ' Sir, my name is on the collar of that cur. He goes when 
I say ' ste-boy,' comes when I whistle, follows me and is under my 
direction entirely, but I can't pay you ; that dog belongs to Mr. 
Faxon of Liverpool ! ' " Then followed some half dozen more illus- 
trations as pat as this one — only the dim outlines of which I have 
reproduced here — completely overwhelming the defense, and win- 
ning a verdict for the plaintiff. 

He was solicited by a young and inexperienced attorney to assist 
in the defense of a poor widow, whom two rich plaintiffs had got 
involved in the technicalities of the law. He concluded somewhat 
as follows : "In conclusion, gentlemen, I am here at the solicitation 
of my young brother without scrip and without price. I told him I 
would charge nothing. I reconsider. I will charge, and I ask him 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 4I 

here and now to promise to discharge the obligation. It is this : 
When my now shattered formshall be laid in its tomb, my lips sealed 
with death, my voice silent in the grave, my wife set upon by legal 
robbers armed with the technicalities of the law, and he is standing 
by with ripened experience and a warm heart, I ask him to walk as 
boldly to her defense and with as pitying a heart as I have come out 
to the defense of this poor woman." Then lifting up his palsied arm 
with the hand of the other, and turning to his young associate, he ad- 
ded, with terrible emphasis, "Will you do it.'" His exact words 
cannot be reproduced nor his manner described, but many eyes were 
dimmed. There was no noise in that court room. Defending the case 
of an old man against a chargeof assault and battery, in which ])laintiff 
claimed defendant had produced a hernia, the proof of which failed, 
the plaintiff 's attorney begged in his argument for damages for a 
common assault, and said, "We do not demand a million of money 
from this old man ; give us fair, reasonable damages." The defend- 
ant was a perfect picture of very neat poverty. Mr. Bartlett com- 
menced his address somewhat as follows : "Gentlemen of the jury, 

I knew my brother R when a boy. He was a magnanimous 

boy. I see him ripening into a wonderfully magnanimous man. 
But today he has capped the clima.x of his magnanimity. He says 
he don't demand a million of money from my client. Good God ! 
gentlemen of the jury, if he should demand and recover at your 
hands a million of money from my poor old client, it would reduce 
him to comparative want. It would seriously interfere with his 
annual rents and jirofits." 

His sudden transitions from the most stirring passages of his 
speech to a quiet, deliberate, or pathetic style were seldom equalled. 
In a flash the whole man, voice, mode, manner and every expres- 
sion, including attitude of body as well, would be changed, and 
that, too, without creating the slightest shock or unpleasant sensa- 
tion. He was very adroit and exhibited great courage in turning 
a tide of sentiment when he saw it setting against his client. 

On one occasion the writer was conducting a case that was almost 
without question, and in which the client merited sympathy, and 
counsel flattered himself that a sentiment prevailed that could not 
be disturbed. 

Then the tall form of Mr. Bartlett arose and seemed to assume 
most gigantic pi'oportions, and with tlie most serio-comic facial 



42 PIONEERS OF THE HAR 

expression, and in measured cadences, he commenced : " Gentlemen 
of the jury : We will now conclude these solemn exercises by 
singing ' Hark, from the tomb a doleful sound ! Mine ears, attend 
the cry,' and while the choir is singing I will invite my friend to 
'come view the ground where he must shortly lie.' Then continu- 
ing in a strain of grandiloquent drollery, it was not long before the 
speech which preceded him was out of sight and out of mind. 
But as in this case, at times his purpose would be so apparent as to 
destroy the effect of the effort on the case. But, as the client 
remarked, he "would make things look blue" at such times. 

Few men would venture to talk to a jury upon so intricate a sub- 
ject as special pleading, but I have heard him perform the daring 
feat of explaining to a jury how a demurrer reaches back through 
the record, and fastens on to the first defect in the pleadings, in 
most peculiar manner and language, which latter I cannot even 
recall. I recollect, however, that after a variety of wonderfully 
ingenious illustrations of the subject, he closed by saying, " So you 
see, gentlemen, the plaintiff demurs to the defendant's plea, and 
the defendant replies, Well, I say, what of it, too .' If I have not 
replied to your declaration properly, I have not replied at all, you 
say. Now I say your declaration is defective, and so there is no 
declaration for me to reply to." 

The field for the exercise of his illustrative faculties seemed 
boundless. He was not a remarkable technologist, nor was he, as 
a rule, a very close reasoner. But his wonderful power was in his 
broad common sense, and quick apprehension and aptness in deal- 
ing with questions of fact, especially those involving probabilities. 

In the trial of a case in which the party claimed he did not have 
time to get off a crossing in time to prevent a collision, not having 
over two minutes in which to do so, Mr. Bartlett having concluded 
his address upon that branch of the case, suddenly stopped, and 
remained steadfastly gazing over the heads of the jury full into the 
large round face of the clock over and behind them. His impress- 
ive manner gradually secured a breathless silence. Then he con- 
tinued, addressing the clock — "Tell me, thou ingenious chronicler 
of time, how long will you be in telling us two minutes ? " He 
then commenced moving his hand to and fro in correspondence 
with the sound of the seconds and counting them for two minutes ; 
and, in the minds of the jury, the man could have been far from 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 43 

danger long before the expiration of the longest two minutes that 
the man on the other side ever lived through. 

No circumstance or object which he could appropriate ever 
escaped his quick eye. 

On another occasion he was discussing a question of damages 
against a railway company which had substantially ruined his cli- 
ent's little village residence by building a high embankment, or 
"dump," along in front of his house, shutting out the view of the 
highway and a beautiful prospect beyond, and compelling him to 
climb out of his house as out of a cellar. A measurement of the 
land so taken was made, and the quantity was stated by the com- 
pany and its value per acre as a means of getting at the amount of 
damages. In reference to this Mr. Bartlett said : " Gentlemen, I 
have a nice broadcloth coat. It cost me one hundred dollars. The 
cloth was five dollars per yard. This company sends its agent, and 
he cuts one-fifth of a yard out of the part most prominent to view, 
and the company say, ' Mr. Bartlett, you have been damaged for my 
convenience and ought to be paid for it, and, by heaven, you shall 
be. Here is one dollar — every cent the cloth cost.' " 

No one can describe Mr. Bartlett, he was possessed of such spon- 
taneity, such vivid imagination, warm social qualities, generous sym- 
pathies, tender-heartedness and lion-like make up, mentally and 
physically. 

He was, of course, not without faults, and during his latter days 
he was somewhat irritable. But he never lost his magnanimity. 
His contempt for what he regarded mean or ungenerous led him in 
his denunciations at times very near the borders of abuse. His 
bilious temperament at times assumed the "grand, gloomy and 
peculiar" t)'pe ; but in it there was no personal malice or envy, and 
out of it would jjour floods of light and warm good-fellowship after 
the " clouds rolled by." But woe be to the man who took advantage 
of his infirmity, or sprung an unknown or quietly and designingly 
obtained docket order on him. Then the offending party had best 
get in out of the storm, for little technical rules would bend and 
sway like young willows in a gale. His life created interesting 
incidents enough to fill a volume. It is saying much, but I venture 
the remark that the variety in style of his oratory, especially 
instances of the grand and stormy, yet never destructive or uncon- 
trolled order, were seldom equaled. His torrent-like, but never 



44 PIONEERS OF THE I'.AK. 

boisterous or harsh, voice one would seem to hear like hearing the 
sound of Niagara after being separated from either. His personal 
influence was great, his presence warm, impressive and enlivening, 
and the impress of his absence correspondingly deep. The sun 
never sat on a sadder day to his immediate personal friends than 
that on which he died, nor did eternal night ever close down upon 
a life which was succeeded by a more lonely stillness. 



BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR 

OF 

ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 



MOSES CHASE. 

THE subject of this sketch was born in Cornish, N. H., Novem- 
ber 29, 1772, and was the son of Moses Chase, one of the 
early settlers of that town. His primary education was obtained 
at the common schools and academy of his native town, and he 
subsequently took a full course at Dartmouth College, from which 
institution he graduated with high honors. He went to Litchfield, 
Conn., and there pursued the study of the law, and upon his admis- 
sion to the bar, he was married January 20, 1800, to Deborah Ball, 
of Litchfield, and at once started for the new state of Vermont, and 
settled at Bradford for the practice of his profession. The first 
session of court for the new county of Orleans was to be held at 
Craftsbury on the 24th day of March, iSoo, and Moses Chase 
attended, and on the second day of the session was admitted to the 
bar, he being the first attorney to be admitted to practice in that 
county. Mr. Chase lived at liradford, and practiced his profession 
until 1833, when he moved to I^yndon. He practiced law but little 
after removing to Lyndon, and died July, 1861. He raised a family 
of nine children. As a lawyer he was well read and a safe adviser, 
always thinking more about the interest of his client than his own 
fee. In fact, his fee was a secondary matter, and nothing but a 
pinch of poverty would ever induce him to call for it ; consequently 
he was not successful financially. Like a great many lawyers of his 
day, the matter of practicing law for the money it would bring him 
never entered his head. He was a man of very strong impulses, 
and always went into a case with all the force and vigor of which 
he was possessed, and which was great. No man at the Bradford 
bar would call out so many sjiectators to a trial, because he always 
7 



46 BIOGKAPIIY OF THE ISAK 

made it interesting. As a citizen he was highly esteemed, his pur- 
poses were noble and his advice sound, and he always desired the 
highest good of the individual, and of society. He was generous 
to a fault, and would give to charity when he ought to have been 
circulating a subscription paper for his own family. It was often 
said in Bradford that Moses Chase was provoked if he lost a chance 
to head a subscription paper for any good cause. 



JOSEPH C. BRADLEY. 

JOSEPH C. BRADLEY, son of Capt. Miles Bradley of New 
Haven, Vt., deceased, was born in Salisbury, Conn., August 8, 
1779. His mother was Jane Hogoboom, a native of Germany. 
He came, when quite a small boy, with the family to New Haven, 
Vt. He was educated at Middlebury Academy, and after complet- 
ing his course there, was principal of the same school. He studied 
law with Hon. Daniel Chipman, and was admitted to the bar of 
Addison county in 1 798, and within a year or two moved to the 
then new county of Orleans and settled at Greensboro. He at once 
took a prominent part in the affairs of the new county, his name ap- 
pearing in almost every case for several years. He was the first 
state's attorney for the county of Orleans, holding the office for two 
elections — 1800 and 1801. He moved to Hardwick, as near as I can 
ascertain, about 1804, and in 1813 returned to New Haven, Vt., 
where he opened an office, and continued in active practice until 
about 1840, when he moved to Bristol, and died there August 2, 

1854, leaving a widow, who died in the same house September iS, 

1855. He married Mary White Warner of Hardwick, daughter of 
Gen. Jonathan W^arner, about 1808, by whom he had seven children. 
He was postmaster in New Haven twenty years, and justice of the 
peace seventeen years, holding the office after his removal to 
Bristol. 

WILLIAM BAXTER. 

THIv Ba.xters of Orleans county are sprung remotely from the 
Ba.xters of Norwich, England, who came to America about 
1632, and with others from the same county, Norfolk, founded Nor- 
wich, Conn. The name Baxter is strongly associated with Norwich, 



OKLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 47 

for about 1775, a colon)' from Norwich, Conn., foiiiulcd the newer 
Norwich in Windsor count)-, Vt. Among those who came to Nor- 
wich in 1777 was KUhu Baxter, and his bride, Triphcna Taylor. 
Fifteen children were born to them in Norwich, the oldest, William 
Baxter, born August 3, 1778, being the subject of this sketch. 

After obtaining what education he could at the schools of that 
vicinity, he pursued the study of the law with Hon. Daniel Buck of 
Norwich. After the completion of his law studies, he commenced 
the practice of his profession at Brownington, and was admitted to 
the Orleans county bar November 23, 1801, being the second 
(Moses Chase having been the first), to be admitted in that county 
after its organization, and resided there until his death Octo- 
ber I, 1827. The Vermont Historical Gazetteer says of him : 
" William Ba.\ter, although somewhat rough, was a man of great 
shrewdness and talent, and was for many years at the head of the 
bar in northeastern Vermont. At the time he came to Browning- 
ton all the property he possessed was a pinch-beck watch, a horse, 
saddle, bridle, saddle bags, a few law books, and some few shillings 
in money. He hired his board and horse-keeping at Judge Strong's, 
remarking when he went there that he could not pay his board then, 
and did not know as he ever could ; he engaged to pay ten shillings 
and si.x pence per week. Luke Gilbert, Esq., one-of the prominent 
inhabitants of the town at that time, hearing that a young lawyer 
had come into the place, and learning the enormous price he was to 
pay for board for himself and horse, remarked that ' he had come 
to a very poor place, and would find very poor picking.' Mr. Bax- 
ter (though in very poor health always), soon won for himself a 
good reputation as a business man, and acquired much notoriety 
for his perseverance, quickness of apprehension in financial mat- 
ters, and good judgment of law, as well as ability as an advocate. 
He was as good a collector as lawyer, and very particular about 
paying promptly to his clients all that he had collected for them. 
In the early years of his practice as collector, before he had any 
property of his own, he was accustomed when collecting for several 
individuals, to mark each package separately, putting upon the 
paper the name of the person for whom it was collected, that it 
might be ready when called for. His perseverance in collecting 
demands for others, and his prompt manner of doing business, soon 
brought him into great notoriety about the county, and a large 



48 I5IOGKAPHV OF THE P.AR 

amount of foreign business was placed in liis hands. Mr. Baxter 
was also a good farmer, and always raised good crops. He appeared 
to be a good judge of the different soils, and understood their man- 
agement well. In all his affairs he was as industrious as his health 
would admit, and in this way he accumulated a great property for a 
man living in the north part of Vermont, his estate at his death 
being apprised at Si 00,000 or over, all of which he accumulated 
during the twenty-five years of his residence in Brownington, being 
an average gain of four thousand dollars per year. 

Mr. Ba.xter was well known as an active man in all town affairs, 
whether financial or requiring enterprise, and was ever liberal in 
aiding the religious and benevolent objects of the day. He erected 
the academy in Brownington at his own expense, the land having 
been given by Samuel Smith, Jr., and gave it to the county for the 
purpose of a grammar school, making it one of the provisions that 
the second story should be appropriated as a place of public wor- 
ship, until such time as it should be required for the interest of the 
grammai' school. Though making no pretensions to piety, his 
benevolence and assistance in sustaining religious worship, and the 
prominence he ever held in the offices of the town, caused his loss 
to be much lamented by the whole town. It seems that he hekl, at 
different times, every office in the gift of the town, from those of 
hog reeve and fence-viewer to that of the representative of the peo- 
ple in the legislature. He held for a series of years from two to 
six or eight public offices at a time." 

He was state's attorney for the county of Orleans from 1802 to 
18 14, and assistant judge for 1825 and 1826. He married Lydia 
Ashley of Claremont, N. H., April 17, 1799, by whom he became 
the father of eight children, four of whom died while quite young. 
The names of those who grew to maturity were Portus, Carlos, 
Charles B., and Eliza. 

JOSEPH MARSH. 

IN the early history of Coventry, Vt., one Jabez G. Fitch of 
Vergennes, was the owner of nearly the whole township. May 
20, 1 80 1, the whole town of Coventry, including the gore, was sold 
at auction at the house of Thomas Tolman in Greensboro, and said 
Fitch was the purchaser ; this, with other rights that he subse- 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 49 

quently acquired, gave him tiic title to nearly the whole town ; and 
it was, through his agency that the town was settled. In the spring 
of 1802 he sent an agent to the town for the sale of lands, and the 
general supervision of his affairs. This agent was Joseph Marsh, 
an attorney, and the subject of our sketch. He lived in a log house 
a few rods south of the present residence of George Harmon, now 
the upper falls. He had a good education, and was quite an attor- 
ney for the times ; but to succeed in this new country required 
greater financial skill than literary attainments. In this Mr. Marsh 
was lacking, and though he became the owner of some lands, he 
was obliged to transfer them in payment of debts, and at length 
removed to Brownington. The town of Coventry was organized 
March 31, 1803. Joseph Marsh was elected town clerk, also one 
of the listers. The first freeman's meeting was held September 6, 
1803, when sixteen votes, the unanimous vote of the town, was 
given for Isaac Tichenor for governor, and Joseph Marsh was 
elected representative. The first lawsuit in Coventry was in the 
winter of 1805. It was held at the house of B. D. Smith, who was 
the magistrate. William Baxter, Esq., of Brownington, was plain- 
tiff, and attornev for himself, and Mr. Marsh was defendant, and 
attorney for himself. The action was founded on a note given to 
Percy Gardner. The defence was that the note was given for beef, 
which Gardner warranted all right, and which, in fact, was not 
sweet. But the plaintiff proved by Gardner and several other wit- 
nesses that w^hen Marsh took the beef it was understood it should 
be for " better or for worse," hence the plaintiff recovered. Mr. 
Marsh remained in Brownington but a short time, but where he 
went, or what became of him, I have been unable to ascertain. 



EZRA CARTER. 

THE subject of this sketch was born at Concord, N. II., Feb-, 
ruary 15, 1773. Of his early life little is known, except that 
he had a great love for books, and an insatiable desire to acquire a 
liberal education. After surmounting many difficulties he at last 
fitted for college, and entered Dartmouth, from which institution 
he graduated in 1797 with high honors, and the same year accepted 
the position of principal of the then very flourishing academy at 



50 BIOGRAPHV OF THE BAR 

Peacham, Vt. The profession of law bcint; his aim, he devoted all 
his spare time assiduously to its study, and was admitted to the bar 
of Orleans county August 23, 1803, and he was probably a mem- 
ber of the bar of Caledonia county. He never engaged in the 
exclusive practice of the law, but continued the principal of the 
academy until his death, which occurred October 10, 181 1, at 
the threshold of what promised to be a very useful life. He was a 
very successful teacher. He seldom failed to get the good will and 
high esteem of his pupils. His power to influence, stimulate, and 
direct them in regard to their character, studies, and future pur- 
suits, was very great. In the early history of that town he filled 
an important and useful sphere of action, and he had very much to 
do with giving shape and tone to methods of study, application and 
industry. For many years large numbers of the young men of that 
section sought his instruction, either to be fitted for college, or for 
a business life. 



JESSIE OLDS. 

JESSIE OLDS was the first white man who settled in the town 
of Westfield, Orleans county. In the year 1798 he left the 
town of Montague, Mass., bringing with him his wife, a daughter 
of Seymour Taft of Montague, and two or three children, entered 
the unbroken wilderness, and began a clearing on what is now 
known as the Morse place, formerly part of the farm owned by 
Hale Clark, on what is called the "west hill" in Westfield. Mr. 
Olds built a log house, and previous to 1 802 had erected a frame 
barn, probably the first one in town. It is thought he had one 
daughter born in Westfield, which may have been the first one in 
the town. He set out an orchard near his house, a few trees of 
which still remain alive. As his house stood near the onl)' road 
leading into town from the south, it was frequently the temporary 
residence of the early settlers. For nearly a year Mr. Olds and 
his family lived with not another resident nearer than North Troy, 
twelve miles distant ; their nearest neighbor on the south was at 
Craftsbury, twenty miles distant. Mr. Olds possessed an aspiring, 
stirring disposition, and figured somewhat conspicuously in the 
early history of tlie county. He was a man of educatidn, antl gen- 
teel appearance and address. Ileliadbeen a minister of the gos- 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VEKMONT. 5 1 

pel as well as u lawyer, but in consequence of some financial or 
other difficulty In life had left both professions for the time bein<;;, 
and retired to the wilds of Northern Vermont. He always bore a 
good character here, but never had officiated as a minister, so far 
as is known, but once. In June, 1799, two of the sons of Abel 
Skinner, who was then living in the town of Potton, C. E., were 
drowned in the Missisquoi river, and Mr. Olds was called upon to 
preach a funeral sermon, which he did very acce]5tably, from the 
appropriate text, "Be still, and know that I am God," 46th psalm, 
V. 10. He was elected assistant judge of Orleans county court in 
1800, and held the office for two years. At a meeting of the free- 
holders, held at his house March 29, 1S02, when the town of West- 
field was organized, he was elected clerk and one of the listers, 
and in the fall of 1802 he was elected Westfield's first representa- 
tive to the general assembly, and was again elected in 1803. When 
Judge Olds first represented the town of Westfield, the settlement 
consisted of the families of Messrs. Olds, Hobbs, Hartley and Bur- 
gess, and a mulatto man by the name of James or Jim Prophet, as 
he was called, who lived with Judge Olds. A story used to be told 
that at this first freeman's meeting there were but two white men 
there — Judge Olds and Mr. Burgess, and both being anxious to rep- 
resent the town, each voted for himself ; but "Jim," the mulatto, 
liappening to live with the judge, voted for him, and he was tri- 
umphantly elected. The facts of history, however, dispel this 
pleasant story, as the old records show some five or si.x voters pres- 
ent. In 1804 Judge Olds moved to Craftsbury, and March 4, 1805, 
he was admitted a member of the Orleans county bar. Judge Olds 
represented Craftsbury in the general assembly from 1S08 to 1S14, 
inclusive. He moved from Craftsbury to Randolph, Vt., in 18 15, 
and from there to Kentucky, and afterwards to the southern part 
of Illinois, where he died. 



HENRY WORKS. 

HENRY WORKS, according to the records of the court of. 
Orleans county, was admitted to the bar March 4, 1805, from 
the town of ]-!rownington, but never practiced there to any extent, 
as his name does not ajipear as attorney of record in any cause, and 
I am informed that soon after his ailmission he left the town. 



52 BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAK. 

HEZEKIAH FROST. 

HICZMKIAH FROST came to Derby, county of Orleans, from 
the state of Connecticut as early as 1804. He seemed to be 
a liberally educated man, and was engaged in teaching the village 
school a good part of two _years. When not engaged in teaching 
he pursued the study of the law, and was admitted to the bar of 
Orleans county March 3, 1S06, and soon afterward returned to 
Connecticut. 

CHARLES REYNOLDS. 

CHARLES REYNOLDS was admitted to the bar of Orleans 
county, August 25, 1806, from the town of Derby, but I can 
not find that he everopened an office in that town for the practice of 
his profession. In 1808 he commenced practice in the town of 
Sheldon, Franklin county, and was there about three years ; but 
where he went from there I have been unable to ascertain. 



JOSEPH H. ELLIS, et. al. 

THF; following named persons, according to the records of the 
county, were admitted to the bar of this county on the dates 
given below ; but the place where they resided when so admitted 
does not, in any instance, appear on the record, and their names 
never afterward, in any cause, appear on the docket of the court as 
attorneys. Nor do their names appear among the attorneys of the 
state, so far as I can learn. Joseph H. Ellis, admitted August 24, 
1S07, Samuel Upham, February 28, 1822, and Jdhn L. Fuller, Sep- 
tember 9, 1822. 



HORACE BASSETT. 

HORACE BASSETT, who was admitted to the bar of Orleans 
county, August 8, 1809, lived at Peacham, Caledonia county, 
at the time, and never lived in Orleans county. 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 53 

ROGER GRISWOLD BULKLEY. 

THE subject of this sketch was born at Colchester, Conn., 
May 6, 1786, the son of Roger and Jerusha (Root) Bulkley, 
and was educated at the common schools and academies of Con- 
necticut, and attended Yale College. He commenced the study of 
the law in Connecticut, but in 1806 or 1807 he came to Montpclier, 
and entered the office of Charles Bulkley, and August 8, 1809, was 
admitted a member of the bar of Orleans county. Having been 
married in that year, he went to Williamstown, Vt., to practice his 
profession. In 18 12 he enlisted and served during that war, hold- 
ing: the office of sergeant. At the close of the war he moved on 
to a farm in Duxbury, Vt., near Moretown village, where he tilled 
the soil and practiced law in a small way until 1842, when he moved 
into the village of Moretown, and there spent the remaining years 
of his life, practicing law and doing considerable business as a trial 
justice, with the exception of a few years he held the office of jus- 
tice of the peace, until he became infirm and incapable. He was a 
member of the constitutional convention of 1857, in which he took 
a prominent part. He was a man of good native ability. He was 
a very tender-hearted man, one that all when in trouble applied to, 
and never applied in vain. He was continually caused trouble by 
becoming bail for, and signing notes with, his neighbors and towns- 
men, that he afterward had to pay. He died February 2, 1872, at 
the advanced age of eighty-si.\. 



JOSHUA SAWYER. 

JOSHUA SAWYER was born in Old Haverhill, Mass., July 23, 
1789. His ancestors were highly respectable people, and set- 
tled in Haverhill as early as 1640. He was educated in the schools 
of Haverhill and Newburyjiort, and stuilied law with Hon. Edward 
Little of the latter place, and his old law preceptor gave him a let- 
ter of introduction to friends in Vermont, bearing high testimony 
to his integrity, scholarship, and gentlemanly qualities. He was 
educated in what was called the old school of gentlemen, and great 
urbanity marked all of his intercourse with his fellowmcn through 
life. In June, 1809, upon the call of his brother, N. P. Sawyer, he 



54 BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR 

went to Burlington, and entered the office of the Hon. Daniel P"ar- 
rand as a student at law, in order to comply with the bar rules, then 
in strict force in Chittenden county, at least, that the last year's 
study must have been in Vermont. Mr. Sawyer, intending to set- 
tle in the practice of his profession at Hydepark, then a part of 
Orleans county, was admitted to the bar in that county August 27, 
1 8 10, and at once commenced practice at Hydepark. His practice 
extended and grew, and for more than forty years his practice was 
one of the largest in the state, and he was probably engaged in 
more suits than any other lawyer in Vermont. In his early prac- 
tice he came to the courts of Chittenden and Franklin counties, 
but his best field was in Caledonia and his own county. In those 
days the bar of those counties was the most brilliant in the state, 
and there young Sawyer, by the fertility of his resources as a man- 
ager, and the brilliancy of his wit and his imperturbable self- 
possession in trials, fairly held his own as a practitioner, and 
commanded his full share of business and success. He was the 
peer of Mattocks, Bell, Baxter, and a generation of noble men — all 
of whom he survived. At a later period, in the early history of 
Lamoille county, he became associated with a circle of strong men, 
and here again, although distracted by pecuniary embarrassments 
and fast approaching the decline of life, he sustained himself with 
credit, proving himself no unequal match for the best of his com- 
petitors. To the end of his days he was remarkable for an exhaust- 
less fund of anecdote, a readiness of repartee, and a courtliness of 
demeanor which made him a most agreeable companion. With him 
the garrulousness of old age had little that was tiresome ; his sto- 
ries were seldom repetitions, and his wit was fresh and sparkling 
as the youngest. As he mingled with his younger associates, his 
erect form, straight to the last as an arrow, and his dignified car- 
riage, reminded one of an ancient tree standing above its surround- 
ings, whitened by storms and scarred by lightnings, but yet king 
of the forest to the end. He was chosen representative to the 
Legislature for the town of Hydepark, from 181 1 to 1832, in all 
eleven elections. The last two or three years sent expressly as the 
strong man to obtain the new county of Lamoille. He may truly 
be said to have been the father of Lamoille county, as it was very 
largely owing to his skillful management in the legislature that the 
coimty was formed. 



(1KLEANS COUNTY, VEKMONT. 55 

He was state's attorney for the county of Orleans from 1816 to 
1S23. Mr. Sawyer was unfortunate in the matter of property, hav- 
ing lost by fire, Januar)- 26, 1826, his (Ivvelling antl out-buildings, 
together with almost their entire contents. There was no insur- 
ance, the time having not arrived when insurance was common in 
Vermont ; and again in 1828 he lost heavily in the failure of the 
iron business, of which Mr. Sawyer was the projector and an exten- 
sive owner. 

He died at Hydepark, March 16, 1869, aged 80 years. He mar- 
ried in December, iSi i, Mary Keeler, daughter of Aaron Keeler of 
revolutionary fame, by whom he had ten children. 



AUGUSTUS YOUNG. 

THE subject of this biography was born in Arlington, Vt., on 
the 20th day of March, 1785. His father was a revolutionary 
soldier, and fought under Gen. Wayne at Brandywine, Germantown, 
Monmouth and Stony Point. His mother was Mary Willoughby, 
of a very excellent family, and to her teachings Augustus was 
always disposed to attribute those aspirations for a higher and bet- 
ter life. His education was very limited, consisting of a few win- 
ters at a district school when between seven and sixteen years of 
age. Before he was seventeen years of age he removed with his 
mother and her younger children into that part of the town of 
Sterling that has since been annexed to Cambridge. For several 
years he labored with untiring energy in beating the bush, and sup- 
ported his widowed mother and family. Not being robust, he had 
to abandon so rigorous a life, and entered the law office of Isaac 
Warner at Cambridgeboro', subsequently com])leted his law studies 
with Judge Turner at St. Albans, and was admitted to the bar of 
Franklin county in August, 18 10, and soon after commenced the 
practice of his profession at Stowe, where he remained about two 
years. He secured some business, but concluded to remove to 
Craftsbury, one of the shires of the new and growing county of 
Orleans. While in Stowe the following is told of him : " One 
Elias Kinsley, who lived on what is called West Hill, on a place 
since called the Kinsley place, lost a sheep. Some time after- 
ward a sheep's-head was found near the buildings of old Mr. Andrew 



56 BIOGRAPHV OF THE BAR 

Luce, who lived in tlie same ncigliborhood. Kinsley thought he 
recognized the head as having belonged to his sheep, and employed 
Young to commence a suit. Luce employed Roger G. Bulkley of 
Duxbury, to defend. On trial one Samuel Robinson was called as 
a witness to identify the sheep, and swore that he knew it was 
Kinsley's sheep by the Roman nose of the head produced. Bulkley 
(who had a huge nose), in his argument remarked that it was a 
curious way to identify a sheep by the shape of its nose, so long 
after death. Replying to this, Young in his argument, insisted 
that there was nothing singular about the method of proof — that it 
would not be difficult to identify his brother Bulkley by his nose 
si.\ months after his death." 

Friends and clients gradually gathered around him in his new 
home, and a growing practice rewarded his diligence, sobriety, and 
untiring industry. Always upright and honest, he was a safe and 
wise counsellor for the people of the town and vicinity, and they 
were willing to honor him with places of trust and confidence. He 
was the representative to the legislature from the town of Crafts- 
bury for the years i 82 1-2 2-23-24-26-2 8-29-30 and 1832, was 
state's attorney for the county of Orleans for 1824 to 1827, w^as 
senator for that county from 1836 to 1838, and was also judge of 
probate for the county. He subsequently moved to Johnson, and 
later to St. Albans, where he died in the seventy-sixth year of his 
age. He was elected to congress from the third congressional dis- 
trict of Vermont in 1S41, and served one term, and was assistant 
judge of the county court for the county of Franklin in 1851-52 
and '53, in all of which positions he sustained himself with dignity 
and ability. To the court, the bar, and his large circle of friends 
his social qualities were well known and appreciated. His literary 
and scientific labors he always hoped would in time be better under- 
stood, and his philosophical opinions be more commonly received. 
He believed to the fullest extent in the sublime teachings of the 
holy bible. 

JOHN WALLACE. 

By Hon. C. B. Leslie. 

JOHN WALLACK was the son of William and Hannah (Carl- 
ton) Wallace. He was born in Newbury, Vt., August 9, 1789, 
graduated at Dartmouth in 1808, and was admitted to the Orleans 



ORLEANS COUNTV, VEKMONT. 57 

county bar at the August term, iSii. lie practiced in Newbury, 
where he died unmarried in July, 1826. I am credibly informed 
that he was of small stature, a fine scholar, and a polished and elo- 
quent speaker. In politics he was a federalist, and belonged to the 
Washingtonian society. He never obtained a large practice, not 
being in a good fiekl, and spent his time in literary pursuits. 
In other words, he was too much of a scholar to obtain a large 
]iractice. His habits, I understand, were rather convivial, and 
he died at the age of ly years. He delivered an oration against 
the war of 1812 before a large concourse of people at Newbury, Vt., 
at the recjucst of the Washingtonian society, which address was 
published. 

PETER BURBANK. 

By Hon. C. b. Leslie. 

IN the old cemetery at Wells River village in the town of New- 
bury, V^t., lie the remains of Peter Burbank. A marble head- 
stone marks his grave, and has the following inscription upon it : 

" Peter Burbank. 
Counsellor at Law. 
Died Jannary 16, 1836, 
Aged 55 years." 

Mr. Burbank came to Wells River some time before 1820, but 
the precise time I can not state. I have the library which he 
owned, and in " Coke upon Littleton " is inscribed upon fly leaf as 
follows: "Peter Burbank bought, November 10, 1810, price $17," 
and that S. D. Burbank also once owned the book, thus showing 
that he was as early as 18 10 engaged in reading law, but probably 
not practicing. The record shows he was admitted to the bar of 
Orleans county, August 24, 181 2. He came from the state of Con- 
necticut, and I think from the town of Somers. I understand that 
he spent some portion of his time, prior to locating at Wells River, 
in the office of the late Gov. John Mattocks at Peacham, Vt. 

He was a very strong man intellectually, not a liberally educated 
man, but a man of excellent judgment, good mental ability, and 
strong common sense. And he was well grounded in the elemen- 
tary principles of the law, of a very retentive memory, being also 
very diligent in the study and preparation, and vigorous and ener- 



58 BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR 

getic in the trial of his causes, quick to see and apprehend the vital 
points in his case and the weak side of his adversary, and always 
ready to take advantage thereof, and being thus equipped he was a 
hard antagonist to meet. He was a careful counsellor, and there; 
fore, as a natural consequence, he was very successful in his pro- 
fession. His practice was very extensive, and he accumulated 
considerable property by his practice. His style of oratory was 
not scholarly or grammatical, but his arguments to courts and 
jurors were full of strong common sense logic, going right to the 
point. He was a very rapid speaker when he became excited. He 
was of the Gov. Mattocks style in his talk, and was the peer of 
such men as Mattocks, Collamer, Marsh, Fletcher and Bell, and 
other members of the bar of the state in his day. 

Mr. Burbank was very eccentric, and most especially so in his 
dress, frequently wearing on one foot a boot and on the other a 
shoe, an old-fashioned broad-brimmed, round-crowned shaker hat, 
and a ruffled shirt front. His absent-mindedness was sometimes 
very ludicrous. Once he started for Danville to attend court, and 
rode off up the hills towards Ryegate in his old gig bare-headed, 
and he went a mile or more before he realized that he was hatless. 
His likes and dislikes of persons were very strong and tenacious, 
never forgetting a friend, for whom he would do all in his power to 
help ; but one whom he considered an enemy he hardly ever for- 
gave. He was in politics a democrat, and he represented the town 
of Newbury in the legislature for the years 1829, 1830 and 183 1, 
and it was during his being a member that the bank of Newbury 
was chartered through his influence and efforts. There was a great 
effort made after its charter to have it located at Newbury \-illage, 
which was then quite a business place, but Mr. Burbank succeeded 
in getting it located at Wells River. He was a very persevering 
man in whatever he undertook, and generally accomplished his end. 
He never married, and for some years prior to his death lived on 
his farm, which he called the hermitage, in the northwest part of 
Newbury, near the village of South Ryegate, where he died. He 
lived a rural life, and before he went to the hermitage he carried 
on land, not laboring himself, but hiring help to do the labor and 
he directing. He was exceedingly fond of good stock, especially 
horses, and owned and kept the celebrated Morgan horse, which 
was known as the "Burbank Horse" after he bought him, but 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VEKM(.)N'l'. 59 

before that was called, I am quite sure, the "Woodbury Horse." 
He was in full practice of his profession at the time of his death, 
he having the late Elijah Farr as his partner at the time of his 
decease. He took cold, as I remember, at the December term of 
Orange county court, A. D. 1835, and came home sick and died at 
the hermitagre. 



DAVID MANNING CAMP. 

By David M. Camp. 

THIC subject of this sketch was born in Tunbridge, Vt., on the 
21st day of April, A. D- 1788, in a veritable log cabin. He 
was the son of Abel and Anna (Manning) Camp, his father being 
one of the traditional three brothers who came probably from ICng- 
land, and was one of the early settlers in Tunbridge. David M. 
was the fourth child in the family, and, being unusually bright and 
active, he readily became the pet of the household. To use his 
own language : " In early life I had the prestige of smartness 
somehow fi.xed upon me by my ill-judging friends, from the unto- 
ward effects of which I have never recovered." In those days labor 
was the business of the community ; educated minds were rare, 
and hence the opportunities for mental improvement were very 
limited. Young children of the first settlers had never seen a 
school, and the older imes, especially the boys, could not be spared 
from labor, save for a few weeks in the winter. Rapid progress 
was made in the settlement of the state, and a corresponding 
improvement in educational facilities, so that at the age of fifteen 
Mr. Camp had acquired a good common school education for those 
days. For a term or two he attended an academy in the adjoining 
town of Royalton, and in his eighteenth year entered Dartmouth 
college. But an unexpected event soon dissolved that relation, and 
after a summer ui active labor on the farm he entered the Univer- 
sity of Vermont, from which he was in due time graduated with 
honor. His class in the university numbered seventeen, and before 
graduation he, with eleven others, had chosen the legal profession, 
then generally considered the surest and most direct way to ease, 
eminence and wealth. Immediately upon graduation he entered 
the office of Hon. William Hrayton at Swanton, Vt,, and com- 
menced the study of law. Want of funds made it necessary to 



6o BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR. 

secure some kind of labor as an aid in meeting current expenses. 
This he found in clerical work for his instructor, who had a large 
practice, especially in the way of collections, and in similar work 
for the collector of customs for the district of Vermont, who had 
his office in the same building. With this mi.xture of labor and 
study the effect upon him, like many another, seemed somewhat 
unfortunate. When the drudgery of the office was completed, he 
had little relish for study and earnest, efficient investigation. He 
says : " Law-reading under such circumstances was simply hate- 
ful, laborious and unprofitable. My acquisitions, therefore, in legal 
science were few, fragmentary, ill-digested and ill-arranged, and so 
I was unfitted and insufficient for the ordinary labors and uses of 
the profession." While such an unpleasant confession was not war- 
ranted, a long and useful life having fully proven his fine ability, 
rare judgment, and sound practical education, yet the admission 
was in a degree true in his case, as in many others. A few more 
sentences of his in this same connection, emphatically true in these 
times, may prove of interest and benefit to readers of this sketch. 
He says : " It has long been a subject of wonder and regret that 
gentlemen of this profession have so little esprit dn corps, so slight 
an interest in the reputation and welfare of their young brethren, 
and so small a regard for the people at large, as to permit them to 
tolerate the abuse of receiving to their number persons utterly 
unfitted to perform the duties and bear the responsibilities of a 
class so necessary, so honorable, so useful. The same abuse, how- 
ever, is found in all the professions ; the door of entrance is capa- 
cious, the young adventurer is ardent and importunate, his friends, 
perhaps, are respectable, influential and clamorous ; it would, they 
say, be cruel, perhaps dangerous, to repulse him, he may }ct do 
well, become eminent and — the ordinary fruit of a stupid and 
absurd course is found to follow." 

In September, 1S13, Mr. Camp was admitted to the bar, and for 
a single year practiced in company with Judge Bray ton. The war 
of 1812 in great measure broke up the courts, through the unset- 
tled condition of things, and many lawyers taking up the profession 
of arms. Mr. Camp then removed to Derby, in the comparatively 
new county of Orleans, where he continued his services as an offi- 
cer of the customs, and attended to such professional business as 
was offered. 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 6X 

At that time prohibition of trade on the frontier gave rise to an 
active, illicit intercourse with Canada. This trade gave enormous 
profits, and many bold, enterprising, and unpatriotic citizens engaged 
in it. A large detective force became necessary, and the compen- 
sation was not large enough to secure men of the highest capacity 
or the best character. Many of them were very unpopular, and so 
collisions were constantly occurring between the officers and the 
smugglers. Mr. Camp, though closely confined to his office by his 
legitimate duties, was generally believed to be guiding in many 
cases the operations of these detectives. Affairs were badly mj.xed 
for some time, so that his professional business suffered greatly, 
and even before the close of the war he began to weary of the pro- 
fession, and as he remarked, " became quite disgusted in looking to 
the future with the small amount of business it promised, and the 
bitter fruits of certain threatening combinations among my fellows 
of the popular political faith of the county." 

On the return of peace, commercial intercourse with the British 
provinces was resumed, and all kinds of property could be carried 
cither way, and an honest entry and payment of moderate duties 
made every person and his effects perfectly safe. Mr. Camp was 
induced to remain in the custom house, and for twelve years quiet 
and prosperity seem to have been constant and uniform. During 
this period his law business was transferred successively to E. H. 
Starkweather and Lewis Marsh. He remained in the customs 
department until relieved of duty in 1829 by a political change in 
the administration. Some three years previous to this, or about 
1826, he finally and entirely abandoned the practice of law. 

In 1830, being quite at leisure and having some cash funds unem- 
ployed, he went into the mercantile business with Capt. Rufus 
Stewart, who was late an officer in the United States army, in the 
war of 18 1 2. Two or three years after, the Captain sold his inter- 
est in the business to Jacob Bates. The new firm continued in 
trade a few years, but not proving successful, the business by 
mutual consent was closed out. 

In September, 181 5, having purchased a house and a few acres 
of land adjoining, having paid all debts and found a fair competence 
remaining, he married Sarepta Savage of Hartford, Vt., and at the 
mature age of twenty-seven established a home and new family at 
the center of the pleasant and flourishing town of Derby. 
9 



62 lilOGKAPHY OF THE BAR 

In 1825, Mr. Camp was elected as representative from Derby in 
the general assembly, and again in 1S26, 1834 and 1835 the like 
honor was bestowed upon him. In 1836, when the amended con- 
stitution of the state, creating a senate, went into effect, and the 
new state house was completed, he was elected to the ofifice of 
lieutenant-governor, and ex officio became the presiding officer of 
the first Vermont senate. For five years he held this honorable 
position, and it is safe to say that as a presiding officer in that 
body, in the half century since his time he has had hardly an equal, 
never a superior. With a fine physique, good voice, commanding 
presence, quick perception and ready judgment, he was pre-emi- 
nently fitted to control and direct the deliberations of men in any 
assembly. In the years 1842, 1843 and 1844 he was senator for 
the county of Orleans, thus completing twelve years of active, 
efficient and valuable service as a legislator — four years as repre- 
sentative, three as senator and five as presiding officer of the senate. 

Previous to his legislative service, in 18 16 he held the office of 
state's attorney, and for several years subsequent that of assistant 
judge of the county court for the county of Orleans. In all these 
positions of trust he served faithfully and acceptably. If any one 
characteristic predominated in his nature and active life it was that 
of performing every duty strictly, according to provisions of law, or 
in the absence of legal direction, in accordance with strict princi- 
ples of right and justice. 

Mr. Camp was deeply interested in all educational matters. He 
was always a strong friend and active supporter of the academy at 
Derby, whose origin, growth and success he ever watched with the 
greatest interest. Not only the institution itself found in him an 
earnest friend, but many students found a pleasant home in his 
family, and often gained strength and inspiration from his words 
and assistance judiciously rendered. The early recollections of the 
writer are of a pleasant character, when at the age of twelve he 
became a member of the family and commenced his academic 
course. We remember clearly his words of encouragement and 
advice, when a mere boy we were struggling with the translation 
of our fir.st exercise in Virgil, and almost ready to give ujd the con- 
test. Those words were a stimulus never forgotten. Many another 
student in similar circumstances has received from him like encour- 
agement and renewed hope. He fully believed in the common 



ORLEANS COUNTV, VERMONT. 63 

schools as the foundation of a thorough eckicational system, and 
for several years devoted his time and best energies to their improve- 
ment. He fully realized in his own meager school privileges in 
early life, the necessity for better instruction brought within the 
reach of all, even the poorest and most humble. Under the act of 
1845, for the impro\ement of common schools, he was for several 
years superintendent for the county of Orleans. Most of his time 
for these years was spent in the visitation of schools in all parts of 
the county, in public lectures, examinations and holding of insti- 
tutes. If he did not originate the idea, he early established county 
institutes of several days duration, and by his thoroughness in 
drill and insisting rigidly upon prompt, systematic, and orderly dis- 
charge of all duties in the school-room, by teacher and pupil alike, 
he imparted an unwonted enthusiasm, and greatly elevated the 
standard of the common schools in the county. We question if 
to-day these schools throughout the county rank as high in thor- 
oughness of instruction, in discipline, in politeness, in solid practi- 
cal education as under the county system of supervision and his 
efificient management. When the office of county superintendent 
was abolished his interest in the work still continued, and he was 
afterward superintendent in the towns of Derby and Montpelier. 
In his school work his chief underlying principle was thoroughness, 
and especially in the rudiments, at the beginning of the child's edu- 
cation. After years of experience he became convinced that the 
old and common method of teaching the child to read by first learn- 
ing his letters was not the rational and best method, and he became 
a strong advocate of the word method, which in all these years 
since has been making slow but sure progress. 

With the close of his public labors in educational matters, his 
active public life may be said to have closed. With advancing 
years and property amply sufficient to relieve him from the neces- 
sity of daily labor in any profession, he retired from public life, and 
passed the remainder of his days in comparative quiet and ease. 

In May, 1853, his wife died after a brief illness, and in November 
of the ^ame year he married Miss Almira Howes of Montpelier. 
In 1854, having disposed of his real estate in Derby, he removed to 
Montpelier. A few years were passed there and at the west, in 
Milwaukee and Minneapolis, when a strong longing for his old home 
led him to return to Derby, where he purchased a |)leasant i^lace, 



64 BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR 

and quietly passed down the declivity of life, reaching the end 
February 20, 1871, having nearly attained the age of 8^ years. His 
wife is still living at the old homestead. Three children by the 
first marriage still survive: Dr. Norman W. Camp, an Episcopal 
clergyman, now residing in Washington, D. C, associate pastor of 
Epiphany church in that city ; Hoel H. Camp, who for thirty years 
or more has lived in Milwaukee, Wis., now president of the First 
national bank, and one of the solid men of that city ; and, Frances 
Harriette, wife of Prof. J. R. Webb of Benton Harbor, Mich. 

This brief sketch can give but the merest outline of a long life. 
His was in many respects a quiet, unostentatious life, yet active, 
prominent, successful. He was retiring almost diffident yet dig- 
nified, approaching very nearly to the type of "a gentleman of 
the old school." This made him sometimes appear to a stranger as 
stern, reserved, or as this age would say "cold-blooded," yet he was 
kind, sympathetic, tender-hearted, pleasant and social. It needed 
long and intimate acquaintance to know him fully. He had a 
strong will, and so his likes and dislikes were equally strong. It 
required comparatively little time for friends and enemies alike to 
ascertain his true feelings toward them. As a rule his words were 
few, well chosen, and plainly spoken ; their meaning easily and 
fully understood. These characteristics with a thorough abhorrence 
of every species of duplicity, dishonesty and deception, in politics, 
business, religion or social life, occasionally led him into sharp con- 
troversies, in all of which he held firmly to his own convictions of 
right, and usually gained his points. He was thoroughly an honest 
man ; a just man, desiring to receive in all business transactions 
just what belonged to him, no more, no less, and was equally desir- 
ous to accord just the same to others. He was a strong temper- 
ance man, and an ardent advocate of total abstinence. He was 
also a religious man, ha\'ing confessed his faith, and with his wife 
united with the Congregational church in Derby in the year 1825, 
with which body he continued his relationship till death. 

Of his ability or success as a lawyer the writer is unable to speak 
advisedly. But a small portion of his active life was devoted spe- 
cially to that profession, from which we may infer he was not 
ardently attached to it. He possessed a fine intellect, quick per- 
ception, sound judgment ; was free and convincing in speech, sharp, 
pungent, and sarcastic, if necessary — all essential qualifications for 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 65 

the profession ; yet wc arc led to believe from his own admissions 
that he felt the need of a better preparation for the work than he 
had been able to secure. This, with the somewhat unfavorable cir- 
cumstances under which he commenced his practice, no doubt 
diminished his courage and weakened his earlier love for the pro- 
fession, and perhaps led him thus early to abandon it for more con- 
genial, and it may be more efficient service in other directions. 
Certain it is that what the legal profession may have thus lost, his 
town, county, and state gained in active, well-directed efforts in 
behalf of educational, political, social, and religious interests of the 
people. 

CHESTER W. BLOSS. 

CHESTER W. BLOSS, whose name appears among the attor- 
neys of Orleans county as having been admitted to the bar 
March 13, 181 3, never lived in the county. He came early to 
Peacham, Caledonia county, and soon had quite an extensive prac- 
tice, both in his own and the adjoining counties. The late Hon. 
Bliss N. Davis of Danville, said of him : "I had no acquaintance with 
him until I came to the bar myself in 1824 ; he was then in good prac- 
tice at Peacham, and continued so until about 1838, when he moved 
to Beaver, Penn. I do not understand he practiced his profession 
after he left Vermont. I heard of him as a hotel-keeper. Mr. 
Bloss had the reputation in this county of being a very conscien- 
tious lawyer, and very efficient in his business, mostly collecting, 
as that part of the practice at his day was very lucrative. The late 
Gov. Mattocks was practicing law in Peacham at that time, and it 
would take a man of high professional standing to compete with 
him." 



CHARLES DAVIS. 

Biograpliical Sketclics of Eminc-nt American Lawyers. 

WHH.P2 it has been so universally remarked, as to have 
become almost a truism, that in the country in which we 
live, and under our republican form of government, family rank and 
great wealth give to the possessor no real advantage over the one 
who brings to his aid only commanding intellect and moral worth ; 



66 BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR 

yet this should detract nothing from tlie meed of credit awarded 
the self-made man. The factitious obstacles to his progress which 
would exist under a different state of society are removed ; but the 
struggle is none the less praiseworthy that, by the removal of these 
obstacles, the man of ardent aspirations finds himself a competitor 
with the entire mass of his fellow-citizens. We are accustomed, it 
is true, to refer with pride to our ancestry, if we can trace the time 
back to those men of the seventeenth centur)-, whose pride of con- 
science rose superior to pride of power, and whose purity of con- 
duct and motive justified as applicable in truth the name which 
their enemies conferred upon them as a reproach ; yet we refer to 
our puritanic descent only as evidence of the unblemished charac- 
ter which we inherit, and are bound by our earnest efforts to sus- 
tain. This was the only advantage of birth possessed by Charles 
Davis, who is the subject of this sketch, and he, by his own indus- 
try and perseverance, gained for himself the reputation which he 
sustained of a sound lawyer, an able judge, a faithful and efficient 
jniblic officer, and a man of unflinching integrity and ht)nesty of 
purpose. 

Judge Davis was born in Mansfield, Tolland county. Conn., Jan- 
uary I, 1789. His family was of the genuine Puritan stock, their 
ancestors having emigrated from England to Massachusetts early 
in the seventeenth century ; and early in the eighteenth century 
branches of the family were settled in Mansfield. His father, 
Philip Davis, was also a native of Mansfield ; he was a farmer and 
mechanic, and was a man of great industry and activity in business, 
of sterling honesty and integrity, and of exemplary piety and pur- 
ity of character. In January, 1792, he removed with his family to 
Rockingham, in Vermont, where he resided until October, 1806, 
when he removed to Middlebury, Vt., in order that he might, with 
the more facility, give to his son the advantage of a collegiate edu- 
cation ; and he continued to reside in Middlebury until August, 
1822, when he died at the age of sixty. Until his removal to Mid- 
dlebury his son pursued diligently the occupations of his father, 
with no other advantages of education than were derived from his 
attendance a few months in each year at district schools, and two 
terms at neighboring academies ; but in the spring of 1807 he com- 
menced his stndies preparatory to his collegiate course, and pursued 
them with such diligence and success that in August, 1808, he was 



ORLEANS COUNTV, VKKMUNT. 6/ 

admitted a niL-mber of the sophomore class in MidillelDury College. 
He was associated, in his class, with many young men of talent and 
promise, several of whom have since attained distinguished honors, 
both in the state and under the general government. Among them 
young Davis took rank as a diligent and successful student, and 
when he graduated in 1811 he pronounced an English oration, then 
esteemed an appointment, not the first, indeed, but highly respect- 
able. In September, 181 1, immediately after his graduation, Judge 
Davis commenced the study of the law at Middlebury in the office 
of Daniel Chipman, Esq., who then held a very high rank in his 
profession in the state, as a man of much sagacity and native talent, 
and of very extensive legal learning. Mr. Davis pursued his studies 
without interruption, under the tuition of his able instructor, until 
June, 1814, when he was admitted to the bar. In December, 1814, 
he married Miss Lucinda Stone of Chesterfield, N. H., who died 
January 26, 1884, aged ninety-five years and three months. During 
his residence in Middlebury he became warmly engaged in the 
e.xciting political topics connected with the then existing war with 
Great Britain, and was for some year or more editor of the " Ver- 
mont Mirror," a newspaper strongly opposed to the war ; yet, 
though thus strongly opposed, he always advocated the duty of 
defending the country, when invaded, and several times tendered 
his personal services in the militia for that purpose. His position 
as an editor brought him into immediate contact with many of the 
most active and able politicians of the day ; but although the con- 
tests in which he engaged were warm and often exciting, and he 
young and ardent, esteemed it no part of the duty of an editor to 
lose sight of the amenities and courtesies of life. He continued to 
enjoy, in an eminent degree, the friendship and confidence of men 
of opposite views, with whom his editorial writings brought him 
more immediately in collision. In June, 18 16, Judge Davis removed 
U) Barton, in Orleans county, then comparatively a new county, 
where he resided until March, 181 8, when he removed to Waterford 
in Caledonia county, and remained there until November, 1828, 
when, his professional business having become much enlarged, he 
removed to Danville, the county seat. There were strong men 
then at the bar in that section of the state — John Mattocks, Wil- 
liam Mattocks, Isaac Fletcher, Seth Cushman, James Bell and 
Ephraim Paddock. They were all lawyers of high standing in their 



68 BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR. 

profession, and have left behind them a reputation which their 
descendants may well esteem their best birth-right. Among these 
men of strong minds, some years his seniors in age, Judge Davis 
wrought his way to professional distinction. 

With such competitors, and struggling for years against narrow 
pecuniary circumstances, amid the cares of a growing family, with 
a physical constitution never robust, and often impaired by ill 
health, his success could not be rapid ; but his constantly increasing 
practice and present extended reputation prove that he laid the 
foundation firmly of professional eminence. In 1828 he was 
elected state's attorney for the county of Caledonia, which office 
he held for seven successive years, discharging its duties with fidel- 
ity and success, and in 1838 he was again elected to the same office, 
which he then held for one year. In 1831 he was elected clerk of 
the house of representatives of Vermont, but severe sickness com- 
pelled him to decline a re-election. 

Upon the accession of Gen. Harrison to the presidency in 1S41, 
Judge Davis received, without solicitation upon his part, the office 
of district attorney of the United States for the district of Ver- 
mont, which office he held until the expiration of his commission 
in 1845, when he gave place to a member of the political party 
which had then gained the ascendency. In October, 1845, J"clge 
Davis was elected by the legislature to the office of judge of pro- 
bate for the district, of Caledonia, and again in 1846; but at the 
same session, a bill having passed the legislature providing for the 
election of an additional judge of the supreme court, that office was 
tendered to and accepted by Judge Davis, and was held by him for 
two years. Upon the bench Judge Davis endeavored honestly and 
with an unaffected love of truth and justice, and with an industry 
and application superior to the capacities of his physical constitu- 
tion, to acquit himself creditably and faithfully. The opinions 
delivered by him, and published in the nineteenth and twentieth 
volumes of the Vermont Reports, are noticeable for forcible reason- 
ing, fortified by the results of most thorough research. No analogy 
of the law escaped him, and no authority bearing upon the question 
was overlooked. His reputation as a lawyer, thoroughly educated 
in the principles of his profession, and as an able and honest judge, 
may well be allowed to rest upon these published examples of his 
industry. 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 69 

After his retirement from the bench the townsmen of Judge 
Davis manifested their confidence in his integrity and their appre- 
ciation of his talents by electing him as their representative to the 
legislature of the state at the October session, 1851, although there 
was a majority of more than tvk'o to one in the town against the whig 
party, of which he was well known to be a firm and unwavering 
member. Deservedly placed, during that session, at the head of 
the judiciary committee, the arduous duties devolving upon him 
were performed with a faithfulness and industry best evidenced, 
perhaps, by the published laws of the session, and the reports ema- 
nating from his pen, which were extensively read and appreciated 
throughout the state. Unlike most lawyers, Judge Davis did not 
allow the duties of his professional or official life to prevent his 
acquiring an intimate acquaintance with general literature, and 
while Coke and Blackstone received their share of attention, his 
hours of relaxation were ever devoted to cultivating an acquaint- 
ance with the ancient classics, the best English authors, as well as 
some of the modern languages. The last few years of his life were 
spent with his son, Isaac T. Davis, at Rockford, 111., where he died 
November 21, 1863, aged seventy-four. 



WILLIAM HOWE. 

By I'KOF. EsTES Howe. 

WILLIAM HOWE was descended on both sides from the old 
Puritan stock, who came to Massachusetts in its infancy. 
His father was Dr. Estes Howe, who was a surgeon in the revolu- 
tion, and was present at Bunker Hill and Saratoga. His mother 
was Susanna Dwight. William was born at Belchertown, Hamp- 
shire county, Mass., where his father practiced medicine more than 
fifty years from the 4th of February, 1774. 

William was the oldest of six children, two of whom died in 
infancy. The survivors were a sister and two brothers besides 
himself. 

His father realizing the want of early education himself, sent all 
his sons to college. William graduated at Dartmouth in 1794. He 
studied law at Amherst, the next town to Belchertown, with Hon. 
Simeon Story, a distinguished lawyer, who was in iSoi made one 



70 BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR 

of the justices of the .supreme judicial court. After being admit- 
ted to the bar he settled in Hartford, Conn., but after a short time 
embarked in mercantile pursuits, in which he was engaged for some 
years, but finally failed, and found himself not only penniless, but 
liable under the then prevailing law and custom to imprisonment 
for debt, at the discretion of his creditors. To make a new start 
in life he emigrated to the extreme northern border of Vermont, 
where his father bought him a large farm in what was then almost 
a wilderness. At Derby Line he established himself, and having 
given a year to refreshing his knowledge of the law, he opened an 
office April 28, 18 14. 

He married Anna Child, sister of Marcus and Col. Levi Child, so 
well known for so many years in that vicinity. Howe was then 
forty years of age and his wife twenty-eight. They never had chil- 
dren. He was a member of the legislature from the town of Derby 
from 18 1 3 to 1820, and chief judge of the Orleans county court 
from 1816 to 1824, and one of the assistant judges in 1827 and 
1828, and he died November 19, 1828, being the last survivor of 
the three brothers. All the brothers were lawyers and all judges — 
William in Vermont, Estes in New York, and Samuel in Massachu- 
setts. William was a man decidedly of the old school of men, and 
presided as judge with great dignity. • 



WILLIAM RICHARDSON. 

THE subject of this biography, according to the best authority 
I can obtain, was the son of Israel Putnam and Susan Holmes 
Richardson, of Fairfax, Vt., and a brother of Gen. Israel Bush 
Richardson, who was a prominent officer during the war of the 
rebellion. Of his early life I have no information, but it is proba- 
ble that he was educated in Franklin county, and I am informed he 
studied law with Joshua Sawyer at Hydepark, and was admitted to 
the bar of Orleans county August 21, 181 5, antl about 18 17 com- 
menced practice at Stowe. The Vermont Historical Magazine, in 
the history of Stowe, says of him : " Mr. Richardson opened an 
office and did some business,, though not sufficient to afford him a 
good living. It is said that he occasionally worked out on farms, 
and assisted in clearing up land to supply what was needed to make 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. /I 

ends meet. Tradition has it that he was a man. of moderate 
ability and limited legal learning, though he was accustomed to 
argue cases with considerable vigor and zeal. After remaining here 
about two years he married a daughter of Nathaniel Butts, one of 
the ftrst settlers, by whom he had five or six children. The oldest, 
Charles T. Richardson, studied law a few months in this town, and 
then removed to Michigan, but never practiced. The ne.xt son, 
William Richardson, studied law, was admitted to the bar, and com- 
menced practice in Waterbury, Vt., but lived only three or four 
years after his admission. He was a young man of good promise. 
Some time previous to 1826, Mr. Richardson left home on business 
to Burlington, Vt., and never returned. His family and friends 
never obtained any trace of him, except that he crossed Lake 
Champlain. That year cholera was very prevalent in the country, 
and it was conjectured by his friends that he might have fallen a 
prey to the disease and suddenly died, and was buried unknown 
and unpublished." 

NATHANIEL READ JR. 

THE subject of our sketch, the son of Nathaniel and Anna 
(Keyes) Read, was born at Warren, Winchester county, Mass., 
June 4, 1788. The first of his lineal ancestors who emigrated to 
this country was Elias Read, who came over from England about 
the year 1632 and settled in Woburn, Mass., where he resided until 
his death. His son, Thomas Read, moved to Sudbury, Mass., and 
there lived and died, and his descendants for several generations 
after him continued to reside at the same place. Capt. Nathaniel 
Read, of the fifth generation after Thomas, was born at Sudbury, 
October 6, 1702, and was the great-grandfather of our subject. 

He is reported to have been a man noted for his sound judgment 
and uniform integrity, holding a wide influence among the people 
of his vicinity. His eldest son, Maj. Reuben Read, born Novem- 
ber 2, 1730, was an officer during the war of the revolution, and 
after the capture of Burgoyne's army at Saratoga was detailed by 
Gen. Heath to take charge of the Hessian and British troops. 
Nathaniel Read, the father of our subject, was the third son of Mr. 
Reuben Read, and was born at Warren, April 4, 1762. At nine- 
teen years of age he enlisted in the continental service as a private, 



72 BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR 

and was stationed at West Point at the time of Arnold's treason, 
and one of the men the arch traitor sold and sought to hand over 
to the enemy. After the war he was married to Anna Keyes, 
daughter of Col. Danforth Keyes, an active officer in the revolu- 
tion, and in February, 1800, started with his wife and eight children 
for the wilds of Vermont, settling on what is now one of the finest 
interval farms in Lamoille county, in Cambridge. Here he lived 
and died, honored as one of the substantial men of the town, and 
here the early days of our subject were spent. 

The Vermont Historical Magazine says of him: "In 1805 he 
commenced study with the Rev. Elijah Woolage, the first settled 
minister of Cambridge, kept school in the winter, and the following 
spring went to Burlington, and placed himself as an academican 
under the tuition of Dr. Sanders, then president of the University 
of Vermont. He entered the university in 1807, kept school win- 
ters, and graduated in 181 1. After graduating he taught school most 
of the time until the fall of 181 3, when he entered the service in 
the war between the United States and England, and received the 
appointment of quartermaster-sergeant and commissary. 

The regiment was stationed near the line, and for a short time 
posted alternately at Plattsburgh, Cumberland Head, Chazy and 
Champlain. Instead of going into winter quarters it was dis- 
charged ; and he kept school again the following winter. In Sep- 
tember, 1 8 14, he volunteered in the defense of Plattsburgh, received 
the appointment of quartermaster, was engaged with the Vermont 
troops in the battle of September 11, and received, under the act 
of congress, one hundred and si.xty acres of land as a compensation 
for his services. The following winter he again kept school, and 
in the spring commenced the study of law in the office of Isaac 
Warner and Israel P. Richardson, then law partners at Cambridge- 
boro. In 1815 he studied for a while in the office of Judge Turner 
in St. Albans, and getting somewhat destitute of funds, went into 
the office of Joshua Sawyer, Esq., of Hydepark, and did office work 
for his board and tuition until admitted to the bar of Orleans 
county court, March 4, 1816, Hydepark then being in Orleans 
county. 

He then opened an office at Cambridgeboro, and afterwards at 
the center. At this time there were but four orfive buildings in 
the latter place, and the lands about to a considerable extent in a 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 73 

wilderness state and unimproved. His practice was small, and for 
several years he devoted himself wholly to agricultural pursuits as 
the most congenial employment. Through his instrumentality a 
post-office was established at the Center, and he received the appoint- 
ment of postmaster, which office he held about twenty years. He 
held the offices of justice of the peace and town grand juror for 
several years. His ambition never led him to seek office, or to 
enter upon any schemes or enterprise of speculation, but rather to 
be an honest man and faithful citizen." 



SALMON NYE. 

THE subject of this sketch was born in Springfield, Vt., May 
12, 1792, the son of George and Lucretia (Dartt) Nye. His 
father moved from Springfield to Brownington, Vt., very early in 
the history of that town, and always took an active and influential 
part in its affairs. He is recorded as one of its selectmen as early 
as 1804. Judge Nye's early life, like most farmers' boys, was spent 
attending the district school summers and winters, and industri- 
ously putting in the balance of the time at work on the farm. He 
had an opportunity to attend the Springfield Academy a few terms 
before the family moved to Brownington. He then attended the 
Brownington Academy, completing what education he was able to 
obtain there. Subsequently he entered the office of William Bax- 
ter, the pioneer lawyer of Orleans county, for the study of th-e law, 
and was admitted to the bar of Orleans county, March 3, 181 7. Up 
to about this time the most important points for law business had 
been at the half shire towns — Brownington and Craftsbury. But 
in 18 1 2 the shire had been located at Irasburgh, and the August 
previous to his admission the court had been held there for the first 
time. Owing to the push and energy of Ira H. Allen, who lived 
here, owning much of the town, and who had been instrumental in 
having the shire located at this place, Irasburgh was fast becoming, 
for law business at least, the most important town in the county. 
Consequently young Nye decided to locate there, he being Iras- 
burgh's first attorney. The wisdom of his course was soon appar- 
ent by the large amount of business that came to his office. He 
labored diligently and untiringly, and was ere long rewarded with a 



74 BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR 

lucrative and prosperous business. Judge Nye was sagacious and 
watchful of a client's interest ; he was upright and honorable in his 
dealing, careful and conscientious as a counselor, and, as a judge, 
firm in his adherence to honest conviction. He was elected and 
served as judge of probate for the county of Orleans for the years 
1825, 1S26 and 1827. He was also town clerk for the town of Iras- 
burgh from 1 8 19 so long as he lived. He died at Irasburgh, June 
27, 1828, at the very beginning of what promised a useful and 
honorable life, aged thirty-six years. 



CHARLES MEIGS. 

OI'' the subject of this sketch but little can be ascertained. We 
find from the genealogy of the Meigs family, in the posses- 
sion of Dr. John Meigs of Stanstead, P. Q., that Charles was born 
in Connecticut about 1785. His father's name was Dr. Phineas 
Meigs, and he was born in Bethlehem, Conn., about 1760. This 
record gives the history of the Meigs family from 1638, the date of 
their landing at Weymouth, Mass. Nothing can be learned of the 
early life of our subject until he commenced the practice of the law 
at Morristovvn about 1817. He practiced law there until about 
1 828, when he removed to the West. Hon. Norman Boardman of 
Lyons, Iowa, for many years a prominent lawyer of this county, 
and who was born in Morristovvn, says of him: "Charles Meigs I 
remember well. When I was a small boy he resided at Morristown 
Four Corners, and he used to meet Joshua Sawyer at our place near 
Hydepark quite often in the trial of causes, and in fact Sawyer and 
Meigs were the only lawyers in the vicinity at that time. Meigs 
was a rapid and fluent talker, and had the reputation of being well 
read in the law, although not as great a lawyer as Sawyer." 



GEORGE CARLTON WEST. 

' By E. A. Stewart. 

GEORGE CARLTON WEST, the second son of Judge Pres- 
bury West, was born in St. Johnsbury, Vt., April 17, 1795. 
He received the best education that the academy afforded, and read 
law with Judge Ephraim Paddock of St. John.sbury. Having been 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 75 

admitted to the bar, he married Sophia Lord, a daughter of Judge 
Lord, and went to Norwich, Vt., to practice law. He remained 
there five years, till 1822, when he removed to Brownington, Vt., 
and formed a partnership with William Baxter, who had been for 
many years the only lawyer in that region. Their ofifice was what 
was afterwards known as the " old yellow store," and stood just 
south of the present store building. It was fixed over later by F. 
D. Merrill into a dwelling and so occupied by him for several years, 
and then it was used as a milliner's shop. It was taken down about 
twenty years ago. Mr. Baxter had accumulated a large fortune for 
those times. Being among the first to settle as a lawyer in this 
region, he had a wide sweep of country. In those primitive times 
for this country, commercial transactions were on a small scale. 
But what they lacked in magnitude they made up in number. The 
credit system was more largely in vogue then than now. Merchants 
had two marks on their goods, one for cash and one for credit. It 
was expected that merchandise would be largely sold on credit, and 
from ten to twenty-five per cent more was charged as an equivalent 
to ready cash. At the end of the year the ledger disclosed many 
accounts still unbalanced, which inevitably found their way into the 
lawyer's hands for collection. Barter was much plentier than 
money, the facilities for getting to market, or turning the forests 
into the necessaries of life, being very meager. Then, again, 
Brownington was not the dry place that it now appears to be. For 
various reasons it was a desirable place for a lawyer to settle in. 
Besides having a flourishing academy — a rare enterprise in those 
times — and the reputation of having been the half shire of the 
county for many years, it was really the commercial center for all 
the region round about. The village of Barton Landing was then 
an unknown quantity. Where the village of Newport now stands 
was a pine forest unbroken by a single clearing. The dwellers on 
Lake Memphremagog, as far down as where David Hammond lives, 
were accustomed to come up the lake and river in their row boats 
to Judge Parker's, and thence overland to Jasper Robinson's on the 
hill to "do their trading," and to the post-office, then kept by 
Esquire Stewart, for their mail, a distance of sixteen miles, and the 
journey requiring a whole day for its prosecution. 

By his partnership with Mr. Baxter, Mr. West was at once initi- 
ated into quite a practice. He was a good speaker and a close rea- 



"J^ BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR. 

soner, and soon acquired the reputation of being a man of excellent 
judgment and a shrewd practitioner. The nature of the practice 
then was not calculated to develop the profoundest legal skill. The 
credit system was responsible for the greater part of the lawyer's 
fees. It was no uncommon thing to see a sheriff with his pocket 
full of writs against those debtors who, by misfortune or shiftless- 
ness, had failed to contribute sufficiently to their store-keeper's till 
to balance the ledger. This was the lawyer's legitimate work, but 
it did not tire the brain nor exhaust the mental powers like the 
more complicated and larger cases of a later date. 

Mr. West's Brownington life must have been one of simplicity 
and enjoyment. With a placid disposition, and being withal a lover of 
nature, her quiet, social life, her natural beauty of scenery and her 
literary air, largely superinduced by a flourishing academy, all must 
have suited his taste, though it may be that larger business envi- 
ronments would have heightened this feeling. He spent much time 
and expense in making a home for himself, but just as he got ready 
to occupy it he moved to Irasburgh. It was the house on the hill 
afterwards occupied by Dr. J. F. Skinner, and in later years by 
Rev. S. R. Hall and his family. It was then the best house in town 
next to the Baxter mansion. Mr. West's children were very deli- 
cate in their earlier years, and his neighbors told him it was because 
he kept them in the house so much and away from the dirt. It is 
related that this became somewhat annoying to him, so that with 
the youngest child. Marietta, he took a different course, letting her 
run out of doors to her heart's content, and even helping her to 
dirt as she sat in the yard, saying that if there was " anything to 
the dirt theory she should have the benefit of it." 

Mr. Baxter dying in 1826, Mr. West became administrator of his 
estate, a large one, and requiring a good business ability and integ- 
rity of purpose to secure to the heirs their honest dues. It is 
believed that Mr. West fulfilled these requirements to the letter. 

In 1829, 1830 and 1832, Mr. West represented the town in the 
legislature, and during the years 1830 and 1831 he was the state's 
attorney for the county, that officer then being elected by the legis- 
lature instead of by a direct vote of the people as now. While he 
was in the legislature he was largely instrumental in getting a char- 
ter for a bank at Irasburgh, and on the organization of the bank in 
1833, Mr. West became its first cashier, holding that position till 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMON'T. TJ 

the year 1850. He then moved to Hartland, Vt., where he resided 
for twenty years. The first years of his residence there he was 
elected bank commissioner, serving the state two or three years in 
that position. Having acquired a competence, the remainder of 
his residence there was passed in the quietness and leisure of a 
rural life, with only the care that a few acres of land might impose 
upon him. On the death of his second wife, in 1870, Mr. West 
went to live with his daughter, Mrs. M. W. Wallace, at Suspension 
Bridge, N. Y., where he died in September, 1875, aged eighty years. 
Mr. West had four children by his first wife — two boys and two 
girls. The boys died when quite young. Of the girls, Sophia 
sickened and died while teaching in the academy at Brownington. 
Marietta, the youngest, married a Mr. Wallace, and has lived at 
Suspension Bridge, N. Y., for years past. 



DAVID GOULD. 



DAVID GOULD was admitted to the bar of Orleans county 
August 17, 18 1 8, and soon commenced practice at Hardwick, 
where he remained until about 1822, when he removed to Peacham, 
Vt., and was in practice there several years. 



elisHa h. starkweather. 

THE subject of this sketch was born in Ludlow, Vt., and was 
the son of a Baptist clergyman. He settled in Derby as an 
attorney about 1821 or 1822, and in 1823 he formed a copartnership 
with David M. Camp, under the firm of Camp & Starkweather. 
This continued until 1826, when Mr. Starkweather removed to 
Irasburgh, and there engaged in the practice of the law. He rep- 
resented Irasburgh in the legislature of the state for the years 
1828, 1829, 1830 and 1831. Mr. Starkweather was elected state's 
attorney for the county in 1828, 1829, and also 1835, and was a 
member of the eighth council of censors. In 1834 and 1835 he 
was elected councilor for the county of Orleans. About 1834 or 
1835 he moved to South Troy, where he was actively engaged in 
the practice of the law until about 1838, when he removed to 
Southern Illinois. He was subsequently elected a representative 
II 



yS lilOGKAPHY OF THE BAR 

to the legislature from that state. He was actively engaged in his 
profession and public affairs until his death. As a lawyer in 
Orleans county Mr. Starkweather stood high. He was a very 
good trial lawyer, being quick of perception, apt and ready, with a 
faculty of applying his knowledge when needed. Conscientious 
and painstaking, he prepared his cases well ; his judgment was 
good, and he was always true to his clients. As a citizen Mr. 
Starkweather gained the reputation of being a high-minded and 
honorable gentleman, as is attested by the many high positions of 
trust occupied by him. 

JOHN HAZEN KIMBALL. 

By T. C. Kimball. 

JOHN HAZEN KIMBALL, the oldest son of Hon. John Kim- 
ball, was born in Vershire, Vt., August 30, 1795. This famil)' 
deserves more than a passing notice, they being among the fore- 
most of the stanch and influential pioneers of Vermont. Deacon 
John Kimball, the grandfather of our subject, came early from 
Bradford, Mass., to Concord, N. H., where he was prominent in 
affairs of church and state. Judge John Kimball, the father of 
John Hazen, when but twenty-one years of age, in 1790 settled in 
Vershire, Vt., in the then almost unbroken wilderness. After keep- 
ing " bachelor's hall " a few months he secured a companion in his 
wilderness life in Miss Eunice White, to whom he was married 
December 6, 1792. In 1801 he moved to Barton, Vt., being one 
of the first settlers of the town, bringing with him his wife and 
four children, our subject then being six years of age. 

John H. was brought up to work on his father's farm. He early 
evinced a great fondness for books, and made rapid progress in his 
studies. March 14, 181 5, being then nineteen years old, he deter- 
mined to have a liberal education, left his home, and walked in 
snow and snow-storms to Concord, N. H., his entire capital on 
leaving home being S7.63, of which he spent $2.34 in making the 
journey. He remained there, working on his grandfather Kimball's 
farm until December, when he entered Phillips Academy at Ando- 
ver, Mass., where he fitted himself for Dartmouth College, gradu- 
ating from that institution August, 1821. He paid his expenses in 
college by teaching school winters and working in the hay and har- 





L^-^^^ /i - /^-t^Lci L-*t^d 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 79 

vest fields summers, thus turning- his vacations to the best possible 
and needed purpose. 

He studied law with Joshua Sawyer of Hydcpark, and during 
that time was often sent to the outlying towns to try cases in jus- 
tice courts, in which he had marked success, and received from 
Sawyer hearty commendation. He was admitted to the bar of 
Orleans county at the September term, 1824, and soon after located 
in Barton as attorney at law, which practice he continued until his 
death, l-'ebruary 21, 1858. 

This biographical sketch would be incomplete without reference 
to his true-heartedness, ability, and merits as a lawyer and man. 
He had a high sense of honor, and was untiring in his devotion and 
zeal to his clients, always commanded the respect of the court, and 
made fast and life-long friends of the members of the bar. He 
had a large and lucrative practice, one of the best in Northern Ver- 
mont, being often retained in some of the most important cases in 
the state. The week before his death he was engaged in the man- 
agement of a case in Windsor county. In 1843 and 1844 he held 
the office of state's attorney for the county of Orleans. A sound, 
safe counselor and able advocate, kind, courteous, yet firm and tena- 
cious, he had the polish and culture of a scholar, his presence com- 
manding, being si.x feet two inches in height, of straight and trim 
figure, and his habits unexceptional. He enjoyed having his friends 
around him, at his home and table ; a Christian gentleman, not sec- 
tarian, but connected with the Congregational church, of which he 
was a liberal supporter. He gave all public and philanthropic 
measures his earnest and hearty support. He was to his family all 
the true father implies, and to the world a true man. 

John Hazen Kimball was married October 17, 1827, to Harriet, 
daughter of Timothy Chamberlin of Danville, Vt., a woman every 
way worthy of her husband — a true helpmate. Four sons crowned 
their union — John, a graduate of Dartmouth, clergyman and editor, 
San Francisco, Cal.; Benjamin S., banker. Tower City, Dakota; 
Austin and Timothy C, merchants. New York City. 



8o niOGRAPIIY OF THE P.AR 

« 

GEORGE M. MASON. 

GKORGE M. MASON was born at Sturbridge, Mass., October 
20, 1 80 1, the son of Jacob and Abigail (Marcy) Mason. His 
parents moved to Craftsbury, Vt., prior to 18 14, but George 
remained in Massachusetts, attending school at Southl)ridge and 
other places, among his mother's, the Marcy family, until he com- 
menced the study of the law with Samuel A. Willard, Esq., of 
Morristown, Vt. He was admitted to the bar of Orleans county at 
its September term, A. D., 1824, and soon afterward opened an 
office for the practice of his profession at Westfield, Vt. He 
remained there one year, then removed to Craftsbury. In 1828 he 
removed to Morristown, where he practiced his profession a year, 
then went to Barton, where he remained about a year, when he 
moved to Maine, where he made it his home until 1867, when he 
removed to California, where he died, leaving a widow and one child 
living in Gilroy, Cal. 



HARVEY BURTON. 

TIII-^ subject of this sketch was born in Norwich, Vt., August 
19. ^793- He was the son of Capt. Elisha and Sarah (Cogs- 
well) Burton. The grandfather of our subject, Jacob Burton, came 
from Stonington (now Mystic), Conn., in the year 1763, and bought 
a section or sections of land where the village of Norwich now 
stands. The following year he brought his family to the then wil- 
derness, he being the first settler. From this time forth he always 
took a leading and influential part in the affairs of the town ; was 
a member of several of the first conventions of the New Hamp- 
shire grants during the year 1777. The father of Harvey was an 
active and prominent citizen in Norwich. 

In 1785 he was instrumental in founding at Norwich the Windsor 
County Grammar School, where the subject of our sketch received 
the most of his education. In the war of 181 2 young Burton 
enlisted, and served in Lieut. Joseph Mayo's company of New York 
militia. About 1823 he went to Brownington and entered the 
office of George C. West, Esq., an attorney who had moved from 
Norwich the year previous, and was admitted to the Orleans county 
bar at its September term, 1825, and immediately commenced the 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VKRMONT. 8 1 

practice of his profession at Norwich, where he remained in active 
practice until near the time of his death. In politics he was at 
first a whig, and later a republican, ever actively identifying him- 
self with his party. In 1825 he was appointed aide to Gov. Van 
Ness. He served as senator from the county of Windsor for the 
years 1845 and 1847, and w^as postmaster at Norwich under several 
administrations. As a citizen Mr. Burton was unceasing in his 
endeavors to promote the religious and educational interests of the 
communit)', and ever ready in all good works. As a law3'cr his 
forte was not as an advocate or pleader, but he had excellent judg- 
ment and a good knowledge of the law. He was an excellent man 
to prepare a case for trial in the higher courts, but made no preten- 
sions of ability to there present it, nearly always being associated 
with some one who was able in that direction. 

He was a most excellent collector, and had a great deal of that 
kind of business to do. He was never in the habit of picking up 
cases for the sake of his fees, and many a case I have known him 
to refuse and advise a settlement, rather than to urge on what he 
knew would result in prolonged and disastrous litigation, should he 
accept the man as his client. He was usually very fortunate in his 
cases, and mainly from this cause. He always had a large docket 
in justice courts, and tried his cases with marked ability, and while 
he was sharp enough in his practice to take advantage of his oppo- 
nent's faults, still he was always regarded as an honest lawyer. He 
was twice married and had seven children, five of whom still sur- 
vive. A long, useful, and honored life closed with his death, Octo- 
ber 22, 1868. 



LEWIS MARSH. 

LEWIS MARSH, the son of William and Hannah (Nye) Marsh, 
w^as born in Montpelier, July 6, 1804. He attended the com- 
mon schools and the Washington County Grammar School. He 
commenced the study of the law with J. Y. Vail of Montpelier, 
where he remained about two years, and completed his law studies 
with Hon. Nicholas Kaylies, and was admitted to the bar of Wash- 
ington county at the September term, 1826, and immediately went 
to Derby, Orleans county, and opened an office for the practice of 
his profession. He continued in active practice there for over eight 



82 BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR 

years until failing health compelled him to relinquish it, and he 
returned to his father's house in Montpelier, where, after a few 
weeks' illness, he died June 4, 1835. Although Mr. Marsh's con- 
nection with the bar was comparatively brief, yet it was long enough 
for him to establish a very excellent reputation as a lawyer. His 
briefs in some of the earlier Vermont reports show a highly cul- 
tured legal mind, and indicate a brilliant future had he been spared. 
His practice in his profession was among the ablest talent of the 
state. The late Chief Justice Isaac F. Redfield while at the bar 
was his neighbor and competitor, and it is said of them that they 
were well matched in their profession. This certainly would seem 
to be fame enough for the young lawyer. He had to contend, also, 
with such men as Leslie and Starkweather of the Orleans county 
bar, who stood high in their profession. While establishing himself 
in his profession, Mr. Marsh also established himself among his 
constituency as a gentleman of the highest honor and integrity, and 
has long been remembered among the people of Orleans county as 
one of its most worthy citizens. 



JAMES AUGUSTUS PADDOCK. 

THE subject of this biography was born at Craftsbury, April 
1 8, 1798, the son of Dr. James Paddock, Craftsbury's first 
physician. The mother of our subject was Augusta Crafts, the 
daughter of Col. Eben Crafts, from whom the town of Craftsbury 
was named, and the sister of Hon. Samuel C. Crafts, one of the 
ablest and best men which the state has ever had in its public ser- 
vice. Judge Paddock received his primary education at the district 
school of his native village and Peacham Academy, which in those 
days ranked among the highest of its kind in the state. He entered 
the University of Vermont at Burlington and graduated therefrom 
in 1825, and at once commenced the study of the law with Hon. 
Augustus Young of Craftsbury, and was admitted to the bar of 
Orleans covmty at the August term, 1827, and immediately opened 
an office at Craftsbury for the practice of his profession. Young 
Paddock did not have to wait long for business. His reputation 
for reliability and faithfulness was established even before he was 
admitted to the bar, and he soon found himself with a large and 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. S^ 

lucrative practice. But the great labor and close application neces- 
sary to successfully carry on a large legal business soon begun to 
tell upon his health, and he was soon impressed with the fact if he 
desired to live to the usual age of man he must, in the main, relin- 
quish his chosen profession. It was hard for him to do this, as 
everything up to this time gave forth great promise for the future 
success of his life, but he well knew that to be a great lawyer 
required constant study and hard work. 

From this time forth he sought no professional work, doing only 
such legal work as his old clients urged upon him, occupying him- 
self with agricultural and other pursuits conducive to health. In 
1847 he was elected assistant judge of the county court, and re- 
elected in 1848. In 1854 he was elected judge of probate for the 
county of Orleans, an office which he held but one year, as at the 
next election the opposite party politically were victorious. 

Judge Paddock was married in 1827 to Mary C. Phelps, by whom 
he had four children. Judge Paddock deceased in April, 1867, and 
at a meeting of the county bar heUI July 9, 1867, appropriate reso- 
lutions were adopted, and John H. Prentiss, Esq., delivered an 
address, from which we quote the following : 

" Within the years of his waning professional life he was an 
assistant judge of the Orleans county court, and by means of his 
legal attainments and his sound and judicial mind and judgment, 
he confessedly and materially aided the court in the performance of 
its important duties. 

Subsequently he was chosen judge of probate for Orleans county, 
a position for which he was pre-eminently fitted by his legal acquire- 
ments, his sound judgment, his wisdom and prudence, his unpreju- 
dicial mind, his exalted reverence for justice, his knowledge of 
mankind, and his sympathy for the widow and the orphaned. For 
this place he so nearly seemed by his virtues to have been ordained, 
that it is no disparagement to others to say, that had the people 
been less subject to the imperious exactions of party, and as true 
to the state and faithful to themselves as he was true to the state and 
faithful to them, he would have adorned that position while his life 
remained. 

In his individuality as a man, he was of pure integrity, gifted 
with a nice punctilious sense of honor. He earned and could have 
had as unanimously in Craftsbury, as Aristides earned antl had in 



84 BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR. 

Athens, the surname of The Just. As a Christian man he was 
exemplary and sincere, as a citizen patriotic and true, as a judge 
upright and just, as a lawyer courteous, discreet and wise, and in 
all his outward life and manifestations he clearly demonstrated that 
all the paramount ends he aimed at were his God's, his country's 
and truth's. 

But it is of his character as a lawyer that it may seem most 
appropriate here and now to speak ; and concerning him in that 
relation it may be truly said that he did no falsehood, neither did 
he consent that any be done in court. He did not wittingly, will- 
ingly or knowingly promote, sue, or procure to be sued, any false or 
unlawful suit, neither gave he aid or consent to the same. He 
delayed no man for lucre or malice, but acted to his office of attor- 
ney within the court according to his best learning and discretion, 
and with all good fidelity as well to the court as to his clients." 



I 



ISAAC F. REDFIELD. 

By Hon. E. J. I'HELrs— 1877. 

SAAC Y. REDFIELD was born in Weathersfield, Vt., on the 
1 0th day of April, 1804, the eldest of a family of twelve chil- 
dren. His father, Dr. Peleg Redfield, removed to Coventry, in 
Orleans county, in 1808, where he spent most of his life, a promi- 
nent physician and much respected citizen, and died in 1848 at the 
age of seventy-two. Judge Redfield graduated with high honors at 
Dartmouth College in 1825, entered immediately upon the study of 
the law, and was admitted to the bar in Orleans county in 1827. 
He rose rapidly in his profession and in public estimation, and held 
from 1832 to I S3 5 the office of state's attorney for that county. In 
February, 1S34, on motion of Daniel Webster, he was admitted to 
the bar of the supreme court of the United States, Chief Justice 
Marshall joresiding. 

At the October session of the legislature of Vermont in 1835, he 
was elected a justice of the supreme court. He was then only 
thirty-one years of age, the youngest man that has ever attained 
that office in the state. His election was entirely unexpected to 
himself, especially as his political opinions were not in accordance 
with those of the majority of the legislature, and it afforded a very 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VEKMONT. 85 

marked proof of the personal and professional reputation he had 
acquired. 

His associates on the bench at the time he took his seat were 
Charles K. Williams, Chief Justice Stephen Royce, Samuel S. 
Phelps and Jacob Collamer. It is not too much to say that the 
court thus formed has never been surpassed in this country. 

Judge Redfield accepted the appointment with much hesitation 
and distrust of his own powers, but had very soon the satisfaction 
of knowing that he was regarded by the bar as the fit associate of 
his distinguished compeers. For twenty-four successive years after 
his first election (the judges being then annually elected in Ver- 
mont), he was unanimously re-elected by the legislature, though a 
large majority of that body were during all that time opposed to 
him in political sentiment. Judge Williams, in 1846, and Judge 
Royce, in 1852, successively retired from the chief justiceship, full 
of years and honors. Judges Phelps and Collamer had meanwhile 
passed from the bench to the United States Senate, the former in 
1S38, the latter in 1842. Judge Redfield succeeded Judge Royce 
as chief justice, and was eight times unanimously elected to that 
office. These facts are far more significant to show the estimation 
in which he was held by the bar and the people of Vermont than 
any comment that can now be made. His term of office was longer 
than that of any judge who ever sat upon the bench in the state, 
though exceeding by only two months that of Judge Royce. 

Judge Redfield's judicial opinions, so far as reported, are con- 
tained in the Vermont Reports from vol. 8 to vol. ^iS^ extending 
through the best period of his life. They form the enduring mon- 
ument by which he will be judged among lawyers when all the gen- 
erations of those who knew him shall have followed him to the 
grave. They exhibit the judicial cast of his mind, the vigor of his 
reasoning powers, the extent and accuracy of his learning, his 
unwearied industry, his clear, strong, conscientious sense of justice, 
the breadth of his views, the elevation of his sentiments. They 
show in some measure the field of his exertions, and the usefulness 
of his long service in the administration of justice. Of all his 
writings, they are the most significant of the character and mental 
structure of the man, because they are not the mere discussion of 
theoretical principles, or the enunciation of abstract conclusions, 
but contain that practical application of legal truth to the affairs of 



86 lilOGRAPHY OF THE BAR 

life and the course of justice, in the success of which the law and 
the judge find their true test and their only substantial value. 
" What good came of it at last ? " is the question that mankind will 
ultimately apply to the finest of learning and the most exhaustive 
disquisitions. 

It is upon this final and best criterion, the justice which they 
wrought in the cases to which they were addressed, and the whole- 
someness of the general system of law which they helped to build 
up, that these recorded labors of Judge Redfield and his associates, 
during a quarter of a century, may be safely left to the considera- 
tion of posterity. 

Judge Redfield's opinions were perhaps more distinguished in 
the departments of equity, commercial and railway law. It would 
be interesting to advert to some of the more important of them, 
and to trace their influence in the deliberations and conclusions of 
other courts. 

But the limits of this brief sketch do not admit. Two or three 
general characteristics are all that can be mentioned. There are 
lawyers who, strong in principles and vigorous in deductive reason- 
ing, too little regard the light and the learning afforded by the 
labors of others. There are those on the other hand who know lit- 
tle but cases, and can be brought to almost any conclusion that 
seems to be sustained by what is called authority, by whom the 
reported decision of a court can never be answered, except by the 
counter decision of some other court. Between these two classes 
of lawyers, Judge Redfield occupied very fortunately a middle 
ground. A diligent student at all times, thoroughly acquainted 
with the course of English and American decisions, drawing largely 
upon their reasoning, and in no respect undervaluing their author- 
ity, established principles, and a strong sense of justice and of right 
were after all the controlling element in bringing him to results. 

He was never brought "by learned reasons to absurd degrees." 
Technicalities were not allowed to subvert justice, when by any 
fair means they could be surmounted or escaped. He regarded the 
general field and current of decision rather than those isolated 
cases always to be found, which constitute the igiies fatiii of the 
law, and serve to lead weak minds astray. He followed authority, 
but he questioned the validity of that authority which controverted 
sound principles, or conducted to unsatisfactory judgments. His 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 87 

views of the law were always elevated. lie did not look upim it as 
an aggregation of arbitrary rules and disconnected machinery, but 
as a broad, fair, and noble science, that ought to pervade with a 
salutary and wholesome influence all the affairs of human life ; as 
not merely the protector of private right, but equally the conserva- 
tor of public liberty. Neither his reading nor his thought was cir- 
cumscribed by the narrow channel of the subjects actually in 
controversy before him. He made himself familiar with the higher 
branches of jurisprudence, its constitutional foundations, its his- 
tory, its philosophy, its morality, its literature, its connection with 
the frame-work of society and of government. He became not 
only a lawyer, but a jurist, in the true sense of the term. Such 
studies enriched his opinions with a many-sided scholarship, and 
gave them an elevated and dignified sentiment. They rest when 
important questions are to be considered upon broader and higher 
grounds than mere technical rules or arbitrary precedents. 

Judge Redfield contributed largely in the course of his judicial 
service, towards that gradual infusion of equity principles into the 
rules of the common law that has marked its recent progress, and 
has brought the two systems so much nearer together than for- 
merly. Many of his opinions could be cited as illustrations of this. 
Striving always to make the standard of legal judgment as nearly 
as possible that of sound morality and substantial justice, and 
strongly predisposed towards the views of courts of equity, he was 
a persistent advocate, often somewhat in advance of the current of 
decision, of a liberal adoption of those views in determining the 
questions and administering the remedies of courts of law. The 
railway system in America had its origin and grew up while Judge 
Redfield was upon the bench, and opened a new and wide range of 
questions and controversies for judicial decision. It is not often 
that an original field of inquiry is presented to courts of justice. 
They have mainly to travel in beaten paths, and originality in the 
law proves usually a very questionable virtue. What the commer- 
cial law was to Mansfield, and the constitution of the United States 
to Marshall, railway law became in a lesser degree to Redfield and 
his associates. Happily they were found equal to the occasion. It 
happened that very many of the important questions on all the 
branches of this subject came before the supreme court of Vermont 
belorc they had been decided elsewhere. Their decisions on these 



88 BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR 

questions form, when taken together, a body of railway law that is 
very nearly complete, and may be referred to with a just pride by 
the bench and bar of the state. 

They have been largely followed elsewhere, and remain almost 
entirely unassailed in the determinations of other courts. In these 
decisions Judge Redfield took a leading part, and devoted much 
labor. He had the advantage of able assistance, and usually a for- 
tunate concurrence of opinion on the part of his associates. The 
attention he was thus compelled to give to the subject, and the 
interest it awakened in his mind, led to the preparation of his 
treatise on the Law of Railways, which he published in 1857. It 
met the immediate demand of the time, and speedily attained a 
very wide circulation. Its admirable clearness and precision of 
statement, the convenience of its arrangement, the soundness and 
practical value of its conclusions, and the fullness of its citations, 
made it what it is likely to remain — the acknowledged and standard 
text book on the subject. Five editions of the work have been 
published. It has come not only into universal use in this country, 
but is referred to with frequent approbation by the bench and bar 
in England. The success of this book, and the growing attention 
his judicial opinions had attracted, especially after he became chief 
justice, gave Judge Redfield a national reputation. Though his 
court was that of a small and rural state, its decisions came to be 
widely known and much respected in other tribunals. But the 
printed records of his labors as a judge and an author can exhibit 
nothing of those qualities of the man which enter so largely into 
the real usefulness of a magistrate. His unfailing courtesy and 
kindness, his amiable temper, his unquestioned and unquestionable 
purity of character, his patience in hearing, the unassuming dignity 
and quiet decorum with which he invested the proceedings of 
his court, the practical sense and sagacity with which he encoun- 
tered questions of fact, these are qualities which will be always 
remembered by those who appeared before him, but of which the 
memory must die when the witnesses are gone. He presided at 
nisi prills with great tact and acceptance. Under his guidance 
juries seldom went astray. And the most disappointed suitor car- 
ried away a kindly respect for the judge. No man was ever more 
capable of appreciating and profiting by a good argument, or was 
more candidly open to its influence. 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 89 

In i860, when the s^reat sectional controversy that culminated in 
the civil war was drawini;- near its height, Judge Redfield clearly 
perceived that his opinions on exciting constitutional questions 
were likely to become unjiopular and distasteful. In no sense a 
politician, but a student, a scholar, and a lawyer all the days of his 
life, his sentiments were naturally conservative, and not likely to 
be changed. Too conscientious and independent either to conceal 
his opinions or to trim them to suit the breeze, he was at the same 
time too sensitive in his nature, and too retiring in his habits, to 
be willing to do battle against the apprehended pressure of popular 
feeling, or the threatened clamor of political excitement. 

He resolved, therefore, to withdraw from the bench and from 
public life. In this resolution he was doubtless unduly sensitive. 
His views upon these questions were those of the best constitu- 
tional lawyers of the country, and were ably and courageously 
maintained by some of its greatest judges. Though overborne for 
a while by the storm, they have all been ultimately sustained by 
the highest tribunal, and will always remain the established law of 
the land. There can be no doubt that the expression, temperate 
though firm, that he would have given to his opinions when occa- 
sions arose, though left in the minority for the time, would in the 
end have added to his reputation, and would have commanded the 
admiration of those, many who had the judgment secretly to 
approve, but not the courage openly to avow them. Undoubtedly, 
notwithstanding these views, he would have been retained upon the 
bench by unanimous consent, so long as he chose to remain there. 

Other reasons, however, had weight in inducing him to retire. 
He had been withdrawn so early by judicial promotion from the 
practice of his profession, that he had acquired but a slender estate, 
which the very moderate salary of his office had not enabled him 
to increase. Liberal offers had been made him to become the edi- 
tor of an edition of Judge Story's works. He desired, also, to pub- 
lish a new edition of his own work on railways, and also certain 
other legal treatises which he had in contemplation. This employ- 
ment, and a residence in Boston, promised an agreeable change 
from the labors of the bench, and offered very desirable pecuniary 
inducements. 

He presided in the su])reme court for the last time at the general 
term of the whole court, held at MontiK-lier in November, i860. 



go lilOGRAPHY OF THE BAR 

The last ojiinion he delivered from the bench was in the case of 
Hart vs, the P'armers' and Mechanics' Bank, reported in the 33d 
volume of Vermont Reports. On the occasion of his retirement, 
the bar of the state adopted a series of very cordial and compli- 
mentary resolutions, which were presfented in open court by Hon. 
L. B. Peck in their behalf. A very appropriate response was made 
by Judge Redfield. The proceedings will be found in the 36th vol- 
ume of Vermont Reports, page 662. His withdrawal from the 
bench occasioned sincere and general regret. 

He removed to Boston in 1 861, immediately after his retirement, 
and there resided until his death. During that period his industry 
was unremitting. Besides successive editions of his work upon 
Railway Law, now extended with the growth of the law and the 
increase of decisions on that subject to two volumes, he wrote and 
published a full and excellent treatise on the Law of Wills, in three 
volumes, and another on Carriers and Bailments, in one volume. 
These have become standard works. He published, also, a very 
useful and well edited collection of American Railway Cases, in two 
volumes, and one of Leading American Cases on Wills, in one vol- 
ume. He edited an edition of Judge Story's work on Equity Juris- 
prudence, Equity Pleading, and on the Conflict of Laws, and of 
Prof. Grcenlcaf's work on the Law of Evidence. 

It is acknowledged on all hands that the work of bringing up 
these treatises to the advance that had taken place since they were 
written, in these important branches of the law, was performed in 
a manner every way worthy their high character and their distin- 
guished authors. Judge Redfield wrote also many of the leading 
articles in a new edition of Bouvier's Law Dictionary. For more 
than twelve years of his residence in Boston, he was one of the 
editors of the American Law Register, and contributed largely to 
its leading articles as well as to its notes on decisions of importance 
and interest, and its miscellaneous matter. During all this time he 
was also considerably engaged in giving opinions, some of which 
were published, in cases submitted to him. 

Large as his professional work during this period of his life was, 
he yet found time for valuable contributions upon those constitu- 
tional questions which connect the principles of jurisprudence with 
those of political government. During the war he wrote for the 
London Law Review an extended and very able article, which was 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 9I 

republished in this country, vindicating the nationality of the 
United States government, and also a letter to Senator Foote, 
which was published in pamphlet form, on the powers of the 
national government, and its duties in the matter of the restoration 
of the seceding states, after the termination of the war. 

He wrote and published various other articles on kindred topics. 
Judge Redfield was, during a large portion of his life, a member of 
the Episcopal Church, and deeply interested in its prosperity. He 
was a frequent and interesting contributor, both while on the bench 
and afterwards, to the Churchman and other church journals. He 
was a delegate to the general convention of the church at all its 
sessions from 1837 to 1861. In the deliberations of that dignified 
body, especially on questions that touched the subject of jurispru- 
dence, he had great influence. He spoke but rarely and never at 
much length, but at times with decisive effect. At the close of the 
civil war a considerable amount of confederate property remained 
in Europe, principally in luigland, consisting of cargoes of cotton, 
money balances, shijis, munitions of war, etc. To this property the 
United States government laid claim, and numerous suits in the 
English courts of chancery resulted. Most of it was subject to 
various and complicated claims by creditors, consignees, agents and 
others, and the title to much of it was in dispute. The pendency 
and conduct of these various proceedings became very embarrass- 
ing to Mr. Adams, the American Minister to Great Britain, and it 
was necessary that competent counsel should be sent to Europe to 
take charge of and direct them. Judge Redfield was appointed by 
Mr. Seward, then secretary of state, in conjunction with Mr. Caleb 
Cushing, the special counsel of the United States government for 
this purpose. He went to lingland immediately after his appoint- 
ment, and remained there in the discharge of the duty assigned 
him for two years, returning home once during the period for con- 
sultation with the government. 

The business with which Judge Redfield was charged was not 
only important, but delicate and difficult in its bearing upon the 
relations of the two countries. There was much sensitiveness of 
feeling at that time between the people of England and of Amer- 
ica, growing out of the events of the war, and the attitude taken 
by Great Britain. The American claims against Great Britain for 
the heavy losses sustained by privateers fitted out in England were 



92 BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR. 

then unadjusted. And it is easy to see how in rash or unskillful 
hands, the claims of the United States government upon citizens 
of England, litigated in British courts, might at that juncture have 
been made productive of serious misunderstandings and disputes. 
The manner in which Judge Redfield and his associate discharged 
this difficult duty, the ability, and at the same time the courtesy, 
tact, and moderation displayed, were worthy of all praise, and were 
in a high degree serviceable and creditable to the government by 
which they were employed. All the success was attained which 
the nature of the claims admitted of. Throughout their prosecu- 
tions nothing took place to disturb the relations of the govern- 
ments, or to give rise to any aggrieved feeling on the part of the 
people on either side, or of the parties more immediately inter- 
ested. Some of the claims were compromised, and all brought to 
a satisfactory conclusion. 

The circumstances of Judge Redfield's stay in England were 
peculiarly gratifying to him. His reputation -as a jurist had pre- 
ceded him, and the mission with which he was accredited brought 
him into communication with many persons of distinction. He 
received much cordial hospitality, esiDCcially from judges and emi- 
nent lawyers, and from some of the dignitaries of the English 
church. In such circles his conservative views, refined manners, 
and cultured conversation, made him personally very acceptable, 
and placed him in marked contrast with those Americans whom 
ostentatious wealth had made conspicuous in European capitals, or 
whom the machinery of party politics has introduced into a social 
position in foreign countries, which they had never reached at 
home. He contracted many friendships in England that were main- 
tained through the remainder of his life. 

On his return from England he resumed his residence in Boston 
and the employments he had relinquished' on his departure. From 
that time to the close of his life, he still kept at work. In the 
labors and studies that had so long been congenial, he found relief 
and consolation through gathering years and declining health. 
Various leading articles for the Law Register were written during 
this period, among them a review of the Legal Tender cases, an 
article on "The right and duty of congress to regulate commerce 
on interstate railways," another on the "Duties of the legal profes- 
sion." The last edition of his work on Railways was also published 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 93 

during this time. And so, in the cherished pursuits, continued to 
the last, of the jurisprudence to which he had devoted his lifg, and 
which he had done so much to cultivate and to dignify ; in the 
esteem and affection of its disciples, by whom he was surrounded ; 
in the communion and fellowship of the church he lo\-ed, he drew 
to the close of his life without an enemy in the world. He realized 
the archangel's benison 

" Till many years over thy head return 
So may'st thou Uve ; till like ripe fruit thou drop 
Into my mother's lap ; or be with ease 
Gathered, not harshly plucked, for death mature." 

He died in Charlestown, Mass., of an attack of pneumonia, on the 
23d day of March, 1876, near the completion of his seventy-second 
year, and was buried at Windsor, Vt. 

Judge Redfield was twice married — first, to Miss Mary Smith of 
Stanstead, Canada ; afterward, to Miss Catherine Clarke of St. 
Johnsbury, who survives him. A son also survives him, and a 
daughter died only six months previous to his own decease. A 
brother, Hon. Timothy P. Redfield, is one of the justices of the 
supreme court of Vermont. 



NATHAN S. HILL. 

NATHAN S. HH.L was born July 30, 1803, the seventh child 
of Caleb and Cynthia (Strong) Hill. His father was a native 
of Rhode Island, and in 1802 purchased a considerable tract of 
forest land on Isle La Motte, and in April, 1803, moved his family 
upon it, and commenced in earnest to carve out for them a home. 
No event of note transpired until the breaking out of the war of 
1812, when he enlisted, and was killed August 16, 1814, leaving a 
widow and twelve children. Thus at this early age was young Hill 
called upon to breast the current of life for himself, if he would 
succeed. He attended the school, such as it was, of his native 
island, and subsequently pursued the study of the classics and 
higher English branches at the academy at St. Albans. He com- 
menced to read law in the office of Judge Bates Turner at St. 
Albans, and during that time attended his full course of law lec- 
tures. He then entered the office of Aldis & Davis, where he 
remained two years, and was admitted to the bar of P'ranklin county 

'3 

\ 



94 BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR 

at its September term, 1828. Soon afterwards he opened an office 
in South Hero, where he remained two years. He then removed 
to Craftsbury in Orleans county, and in January, 1831, entered into 
partnership with Hon. Augustus Young, who had been in practice 
at this place then several years. This partnership continued three 
years. While with Mr. Young and subsequently, Mr. Hill was very 
successful. He was always a careful and diligent student, and 
under all circumstances faithful alike to his profession and his cli- 
ents. He was elected state's attorney in 1845, and re-elected in 
1846. At the annual meeting of the Vermont University at Bur- 
lington in August, 1855, Mr. Hill was elected treasurer of the uni- 
versity, and soon after moved to Burlington, where he, in the 
succeeding twenty-si.x years, devoted himself to the duties of that 
office, and he had the satisfaction of seeing, during this time, the 
university freed from its large indebtedness, and its annual income 
nearly quadrupled. 

MIRON LESLIE. 

By HON. C. B. Leslie. 

MH'ION LESLIE was a native of Bradford, Vt., born on the 
22d day of September, A. D. 1806. His ancestors were of 
Scotch Irish descent, coming from Londonderry, Ireland, to West- 
field, now Londonderry, N. H. His parents were not wealthy but 
were industrious and frugal, but were not able to give their sons a 
collegiate education, and this son's education was what he obtained 
from common schools and the Bradford Academy, and at a private 
school of Rev. Alex. Milligan, a Scotch Presbyterian minister then 
settled at Ryegate, Vt. 

Mr. Milligan was a very learned man, and taught a class of a few 
young men who could not command the means necessary to receive 
a college course. 

The parents of the subject of this sketch died when he was a 
mere boy — the youngest of a family of five sons and five daughters, 
who were left to make their way through life in the best manner 
they could. Mr. Leslie studied law with Peter Burbank at Wells 
River village, in the town of Newbury, Vt., and was admitted to 
the bar at the December term of Orange county court, A. D. 1S28, 
and at the age of about twenty-four went to Derby Line, Vt., and 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 95 

began the practice of his profession. He did not have to wait long 
for business to come to him, and his practice increased from year 
to year. He ranked high as a lawyer and advocate, and he became 
to be so favorably known as a good and thorough lawyer that he 
was tendered an honorable office at the capital of the state, but 
wliich he declined. While at Derby Line he married Miss Cath- 
erine Gillett, who with his daughter, an only child, still at this writ- 
ing survives him, residing at St. Paul, Minn. He practiced at Derby 
Line for about five years, or until the spring of 1835, when he, like 
a good many young men of talent and ambition, felt disposed to 
seek his fortune in the great West, a country that would afford and 
give him a wider and more extended field for the display of his tal- 
ents, and where he could acquire distinction in his profession. In 
1834, after the June term of the Orleans county court, he took 
into partnership E. G. Johnson, a student of his who had been 
admitted at that term, and who remained his partner and who 
bought his business in 1835, when he left Vermont and went West, 
and located at Jacksonville in the state of Illinois. At Jackson- 
ville he soon acquired the reinitation of being a sound lawyer, a 
man of good judgment and a safe counsellor, and in time he 
became distinguished at the bar and well known throughout the 
state. He made many friends and acquaintances, who were 
attached to him not only for his soundness as a lawyer, but also for 
his honesty, intelligence, and excellent social qualities, which some- 
times gushed out in the richest humor and the most sparkling wit. 
He was frequently, while at Jacksonville, solicited and urged to 
become a candidate for congress, but he declined, preferring the 
practice of his profession. The governor of the state of Illinois 
made out and offered him a commission as a judge of the circuit 
court of that state, but which he declined, having made arrange- 
ments to leave the state and go to St. Louis, Mo. While in Illinois 
he indulged in land speculation to a considerable extent and was 
quite wealthy, but the reverses of 1837, '38 and '39 fell heavily 
upon him, and he lost the most of his property. Feeling indis- 
posed to stay where there was so much to daily remind him of his 
reverses, and also desiring to go into a still broader field, in the fall 
of 1839 he went to St. Louis and entered upon the practice of his 
profession there, and soon acquired and enjoyed a wide-spread rep- 
utation as a lawyer. He was a brilliant advocate and was engaged 



96 



BIOGRAPHV OF THE BAR 



in a very large number of important causes, and his talents as a 
lawyer and advocate were of such high order that he was accus- 
tomed to command and receive large fees for his services. While 
living in St. Louis he held many offices of trust and honor. In 
1847 he was elected state senator and again in 1849, the office 
being for two years each term. 

He was in partnership while in St. Louis with Roswell M. Field, 
under the firm name of Leslie & Field. Mr. Field was also a Ver- 
monter. He died at St. Louis on the first day of August, 1854, in 
active practice, having for partners at that time J. L. and R. T. 
Barrett, and being in the prime of life, leaving an honorable record 
in his profession, and as a man, husband and father. 



s 



SAMUEL SUMNER. 

By Frank I.. Roceks, Esi,>. 

AMUEL SUMNER was born at St. Albans, Vt., December 
II, 1801. His father, Rev. Samuel Sumner, after graduating 
at Dartmouth College and the seminary, had married Anna Taylor 
of Southboro, Mass., and settled at St. Albans as pastor of the 
Congregational church. As Northern Vermont afforded few edu- 
cational facilities at that time, young Sumner went to Massachu- 
setts in pursuit of instruction at the instance, no doubt, of his 
grandfather, Rev. Joseph Sumner, D. D., then pastor of the Con- 
gregational church at Shrewsbury. He fitted for college at Leices- 
ter Academy, and entered Harvard University in 1822. After 
being connected with Harvard two years he went South, and 
remained two years teaching, chiefly at Nottingham, Md. In 1826 
he returned to St. Albans, Vt., and begun the study of the law 
with Hon. Stephen Royce. He was admitted to the Franklin 
county bar in September, 1828, and soon after opened a law office 
at Coventry, Vt. The law business in that town not fulfilling his 
expectations, he removed to North Troy in 1830, and a few months 
later to South Troy. There he practiced his profession until i86j. 
In 1830 he was married to Fanny Child, daughter of Thomas 
Child of Bakersfield, Vt. He was for several years agent of the 
Boston and Troy Iron Company, and was elected state's attorney 
in 1838, and again in 1S40 and 1S41. 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 97 

In 1 86 1 he removed to Hydepark, and never afterwards engaged 
actively in the practice of the law, although in a few years again 
returning to Troy. 

He died August 5, 1879, '" ''■'s seventy-eighth year, at the home 
of his daughter, Mrs. V. D. Fitch, in Hydepark. Mrs. Sumner 
died eight years before him. Of their seven children two died in 
childhood. Lydia Ann married Dr. G. S. Rogers of Troy, Henry 
engaged in farming in Troy, Adams G. engaged in business suc- 
cessfully in New York City, and Samuel J. was killed in the war of 
the rebellion at Savage Station, Va., while acting captain of Co. D. 
Sth Regt. Vt. Vols. 

Elizabeth married V. D. Fitch of Hydepark. The early training 
and natural tastes of Samuel Sumner formed him for the pursuits 
of the student, and accordingly it was in the department of coun- 
selor that he best succeeded in his profession. In addition to his 
professional studies he devoted much attention to general literature. 
He wrote a history of the Missisco Valley, which has been largely 
incorporated in Miss Hemenway's Gazetteer, and also occasionally 
contributed articles to various periodicals. 

At an early period of his residence at Troy he united with the 
Congregational church, and during his entire life the integrity of 
his character was above suspicion. 



SAMUEL A. W^ILLARD. 

By Hon. Lukk V. I'oi.and. 

SAMUEL A. WILLARD, son of Solomon and Mary Willard, 
was born in Winchester, N. H., July 14, 1788. His mother 
was a sister of Gen. William Cahoon of Lyndon, Vt. William 
Cahoon was lieutenant-governor and a member of congress from 
Vermont, and quite an important man in Caledonia county in his 
day. Samuel commenced his business life as a merchant at Lyn- 
don, and for some years he was thought to be doing a flourishing 
business, but bye and bye there came a crash, and it ended in a 
very disastrous failure. My subsequent intimate acquaintance with 
him showed me that he never could have been a merchant with any 
other result. He was careless of money, and he could never refuse 
credit to any m;in who made the slightest pretence to being able to 



g8 BIOGKAI'IIV OF THE DAR 

pay. But his creditors were uncharitable, and that was the day of 
imprisonment for debt, and he was thrust into jail at Danville. I 
have been told by some aged person, who was present at court, 
that he remembered his coming from the jail to take his seat upon 
the bench. He having been elected assistant judge of the county 
court in 1824 and re-elected in 1825, soon after this he commenced 
the study of the law with Isaac Fletcher, Esq., of Lyndon, and was 
admitted to the Caledonia county bar in 1828, and commenced 
practice at Morrisville. That region was then pretty litigious, 
and there was a great deal of litigation in regard to lands, ques- 
tions of tax title;;, adverse possession, disputed lines, etc. 

Judge Willard made this department of the law a specialty, and 
he became a learned lawyer in real estate law. I entered his office 
in thespring of 1834, and was admitted to the bar December, 1836, 
and at once became Judge Willard's partner, and we continued 
together for three years. 

He was not a very good trial lawyer. If any new feature turned 
up in his case he was thrown off his balance and could not recover. 
He lacked ready perception and fertility in adapting himself to any 
emergency at once. But he was really a lawyer of very considera- 
ble learning, and quite the best lawyer I ever knew for a man who 
came to the bar so late in life, and under the adverse circumstances 
surrounding him ; it was greatly to his credit. 

He was judge of probate for the district of Lamoille four years 
— 1838, 1840, 1841 and 1843. In 1847 he removed to Barton Land- 
ing. He was state's attorney for the county of Orleans in 1853, 
member of the constitutional convention in 1857, and represented 
the town of Barton in 1861. He married, July 24, 1823, Lucy P. 
Smith of Lyndon. They had no children. He died September 14, 
1864. 

JESSE COOPER. 

By Rev. I.kwis Bodwei.i.. 

THE subject of our sketch, son of Jesse and Sarah (Beach) 
Cooper, was born in Eaton, Province of Quebec, January i, 
1803. During his infancy his parents removed to Canaan, Vt., 
where he remained till he became of age, doing the usual work of a 
farmer's son, and there developed the physical vigor and acquired 




lUl.-4^<~ 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 99 

the ijractical views which stood him in so good stead during all his 
after course. Faithful in diligent attention to present duties, but 
with tastes drawing him toward another calling, he made the utmost 
possible use of every educational privilege within his reach. On 
attaining his majority he spent a few terms at the academy in 
Guildhall, Vt., and having decided to prepare for the practice of 
law, he was received into the office of Isaac Fletcher, then one of 
the most prominent lawyers in his state, and residing at Lyndon. 
After five years here, during which he applied himself to his work 
with his usual zeal and patience, and established a reputation for 
clear judgment and sound reasoning, ifi 1830 he opened an office in 
Irasburgh, Orleans county. There for thirty years pursuing faith- 
fully the duties of his profession, he achieved an enviable reputa- 
tion, a wide practice, and comparative affiuence. Among his 
associates of this period, and living in the same village, were Tim- 
othy P. Redfield, afterward one of the justices of Vermont, and Stod- 
dard B. Colby, of Derby, most widely known by his connection with 
the United States treasury department. During the days of their 
professional connection, Mr. Cooper was, with them, well known both 
in Vermont and New Hampshire ; and in the northern part of these 
states there was rarely a trial of an important legal case with which 
he was not connected. 

After these thirty years, the removal of his partner and son-in- 
law, D. A. Bartlett, and the hope of maintaining his own health 
led him to seek a new home in Kansas; and at Wyandotte he 
opened an office and began a practice which he carried on success- 
fully, till in 1870 he decided to retire from the active duties of a 
profession which he had then followed for forty years. The remain- 
ing years of his life were spent in closing the business still on hantl, 
in his usual active participation in public enterprises of a religious 
and educational nature, in the work of the Congregational church, 
the local and state associations, the Kansas Home Missionary Soci- 
ety, and as a trustee of Washburn College at Topeka, and a director 
of the Freedmen's University at Quindaro. To one of his active 
temperament these were counted among his pleasures, and not as 
at all interfering with the well-earned quiet at the close of a long 
and busy life. 

On Saturday evening, July 13, 1872, after an unusually laborious 
week, and when about to retire, he fell to the floor unconscious, 



lOO rsiOGKAFHY OF THE liAK. 

revived after a few minutes, but remained very feeble, steadily 
declining till the evening of the 21st, when he passed away. 

At a meeting of the bar of Wyandotte county held on the 22d, 
among other usual and appropriate resolutions set forth — "Their 
professional appreciation of the private worth and professional mer- 
its of Mr. Cooper; the loss sustained by the bar in his death ; of 
his untiring labors, large comprehension, and unswerving integrity ;" 
and one of the members, himself a native of Vermont, was appointed 
to prepare for publication a biographical sketch, of which the above 
is an extract, and in which the writer also says of Mr. Cooper: 
"His clear analysis of legal cases, and his power to seize at once 
on their salient points, show the depth and soundness of his intel- 
lect. The determination with which he commenced the study of 
law was seconded by the persistency with which he adhered to its 
practice. He considered the bar as meant for those who would 
devote their lives to assisting the courts in administering, and suit- 
ors in obtaining justice. He loved no other pursuit so well; and 
his career was a protest against the dangerous tendency there is to 
use the profession of the law as a means to attain something foreign 
to it. He chose his profession, and then did what he could to pre- 
serve it from those influences which contaminate it." 

Believing firmly that all good law is from God, and given "that 
we may lead a quiet and peaceable life," he sought to honor his 
profession by making it minister to this rather than his profits only. 
Thus, when in the progress of a long and bitter controversy 
between two prominent citizens, one came to employ him to com- 
mence a suit at law, the disgrace and public injury of such proceed- 
ings between two neighbors and Christian men were so plainly set 
before the client, with such an urgent appeal for a quiet settlement, 
as ended the case at once. Few who knew Mr. Cooper would deny 
the belief that he would gladly forego the honor and profits of a 
successful suit if he might instead hope to share His approval who 
had said, "Blessed are the peace-makers." 

As a Christian his convictions matured in manhood ; his doctri- 
nal views being of a strongly orthodox character, were in important 
features the opposite of those of his early training; and his public 
profession of religion was made near the beginning of his legal 
career. His piety was of the Puritan type, strict, strong, reliable; 
never emotional, but ruled by the one idea of duty ; yet none who 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. ' lOI 

knew his faithful attendance upon the services of the church, his 
enjoyment of her ordinances, his liberal support of her institutions, 
and his warm regard for all Christian people, could doubt the pres- 
ence of a love which was never bounded by the lines of any denom- 
ination, even the one he most loyally adhered to. His firm Christian 
principle leading him to love men, made him an early and life-long 
supporter of the great reform measures which seemed to him need- 
ful steps in the great effort "to make men free." And thus before 
the day of the republican, or even of the free soil party, he was 
one of the forty-three men who constituted the old liberty party of 
Vermont. 

At the same early day he also became an adherent and advocate 
of total abstinence views, and an incident in that connection shows 
most clearly his desire for consistency of practice with precept, in 
himself as well as in others, and his judicial readiness to hear and 
ability to decide, against himself as well as against them. Speak- 
ing by appointment at Lyndon on the temperance question, and 
advancing his teetotal views in his usual downright and unsparing 
style, he had among his hearers his brother, Welch Cooper, a well 
known lawyer of Lancaster, N. H. The lecturer's total abstinence 
theories had not as yet taken in tobacco, of which he was an habit- 
ual consumer. In an interview after the lecture, Welch took occa- 
sion in the soothing language of which he was a master, to denounce 
the absurdity and inconsistency of an assault on intemperate liquor 
drinkers, by one equally intemperate in the use of tobacco. He 
was heard in silence which lasted some time longer, while every 
point made was evidently carefully considered. Then saying 
"Welch, you're right," the pipe was at once thrown away, and for 
the remaining forty years of his life he made no use of tobacco in 
any form. 

Over his coffin one said : " His errors, so plainly visible in the 
light of his undisguised life, we shall honor him by avoiding ; but 
the art of seeming to be only what we are, the lesson of sincerity 
we may learn from him, and he will live again in our lives if his 
austere plainness teaches us to be more sincere. A man simple in 
manners, firm in purpose, independent in action, liberal, pious, as 
such he will still live, long cherished in grateful memory." 



14 



102 BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR 

URIEL CHITTENDEN HATCH. 

THE subject of this biography was born in Hartford, Conn., 
October 21, 1780. After he had obtained a very good educa- 
tion for the times he entered the office of Gen. Stephen R. Brad- 
ley of Westminster, where he acquired his profession, and was 
admitted to the bar of Windsor county. After his admission to the 
bar he settled at Cavendish, Vt., for the practice of the law. Here 
he attained distinction both as a citizen and as a lawyer. He rep- 
resented the town of Cavendish in the legislature in all for fifteen 
elections, and he held for many years the office of judge of probate. 
He was the confidential adviser and counsel for several of Vermont's 
governors. 

He removed from Cavendish about 1830 to Troy, Vt., where he 
was engaged for a few years in the active practice of his profession. 
In 1834 he returned to Windsor county and settled in the village 
of Felchville in the town of Reading, and there practiced his pro- 
fession until failing health compelled him to relinquish it. The 
death of his wife (who was a woman of great excellence of charac- 
ter, displaying under all circumstances the loveliest Christian vir- 
tues), occurred about this time. It weighed heavily upon him, and 
his health gradually declined until his death, June 19, 1878. 



CHARLES STORY. 

CHARLES STORY, the son of Alexander and Sally Myers 
Story, was born at Salem, Mass., December 30, 1788. The 
father was of English parentage and a sea captain, and lived and 
died at Salem, Mass. Charles received such an education as he 
could obtain at the common schools and academies of the time. He 
then came to Montpelier, Vt., and entered the office of J. Y. Vail, 
where he pursued the study of the law, and was admitted to the 
bar of Washington county at the September term, 1819, and imme- 
diately went to Mclndoes Falls in the town of Barnet, and com- 
menced the practice of the law. He remained thereabout ten years 
and then went to Coventry, Orleans county, Vt., where he remained 
in active practice until the spring of 1850, when he moved to New- 
bury, and died in the spring of 1S51. In the words of one who 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 1 03 

knew him well at Coventry, "He was a man of much native talent 
and ability, and was considered a good judge of law. He was not 
gifted as an advocate, and his practice was more particularly the 
trial of justice cases and in preparing cases for trial in the county 
court. He represented the town of Coventry in the legislature as 
a whig in 1832 and again in 1834, was state's attorney for the county 
for the years 1836 and 1837, and was once the member of the con- 
stitutional convention from Coventry." 



DANIEL F. KIMBALL. 

THE subject of this sketch was born at Bath, N. H., August 
20, 1809. He was next to the youngest son of Isaac and 
Dorcus (Hubbard) Kimball. Mr. Kimball moved to Irasburgh, 
Orleans county, Vt., early in the history of that town, and settled 
on a farm on what is known as "Morrill Hill." Here young Kim- 
ball lived, attending the district school winters and summers also, 
until he was large enough to take his place in the field. He had an 
opportunity to attend the academy at Brownington occasionally a 
term, and also the academy at Hartland, Vt., for a while. In this 
way he succeeded in obtaining a very good common school educa- 
tion, with some knowledge of the higher branches. He pursued 
the study of the law with Elisha H. Starkweather at Irasburgh, 
and was admitted to the bar of Orleans county at the September 
term, A. D. 1 831, and soon afterward commenced practice at South 
Troy village, and very soon young Kimball had secured a good liv- 
ing business. But then, as now, large numbers of all classes were 
taking up their march westward, and every mail brought tidings of 
the rich acres and grand opportunities in the then new states of 
Iowa and Wisconsin. Consequently in 1839, Mr. Kimball went to 
Wisconsin and settled at Janesville. He at once opened an office, 
and engaged in the practice of his profession to some extent, but 
the locating of government land and trafficking in the same was 
much of the business of all that section and quite lucrative, and 
became quite a share of his business until his decease, which took 
place at Janesville. Before leaving Vermont he married Miss 
Eunice Penniman of Boston, who also died at Janesville. They 
never had any children. 



I04 niOGRAPHV OF THE BAR 

CARLOS BAXTER. 

CARLOS BAXTER was born at Browniiigton, Orleans county, 
Vt., January 15, 1S09. His father was Hon. William Baxter, 
a prominent lawyer of Orleans county, whose biography is given in 
this volume. After receiving an academical education, he became 
a student in Norwich University during the administration of Capt. 
Alden Partridge, and remained there until he entered the University 
of Vermont in 1826, which institution he left at the end of his 
sophomore year and entered Union College, where he graduated in 
1830. Adopting the law as his profession, he attended lectures at 
Cambridge, Mass. — among those of the same class was Charles 
Sumner — and afterwards at New Haven, Conn. Upon his return 
to Vermont he was examined with great credit to himself, and 
admitted to the bar of Orleans county December 28, 1832, and 
soon located at Burlington. 

Possessed of an ample fortune he did not long follow the law, 
but engaged in extensi\'e business projects, and was at one time 
largely identified with the manufacturing interests of Burlington 
and Winooski, being one of the original stockholders of the liur- 
lington woolen mill. To most worthy enterprises he was generous, 
and always took a deep interest in public affairs. An ardent whig, 
he was elected representative from Burlington in 1840, that most 
exciting year in the history of American politics, and many there 
are that remember well " O. K. 99," the memorable words which 
announced his majority. He was re-elected in 1S41, and was an 
influential member of the general assembly. Of strong anti-slavery 
convictions, he joined the republican party at its organization, and 
was made in 1862 the first collector of internal revenue for that 
congressional district, an office which he acceptably filled and held. 

Mr. Baxter was a man of large stature and fine presence. He 
had many eccentricities, yet he always enjoyed the respect of his 
fellow-citizens, and was loved in the society of his friends. He had 
a good mind, was fond of books, and possessed much independence 
of thought and action. 

He was a man of strict integrity, kind to the poor, and did many 
charitable acts which the world knew little of. 

Mr. Baxter was the younger brother of Hon. Portus l^axtcr, for 
several years the representati\'Cof the old third district in congress. 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. IO5 

He married a daughter of E. H. Deming of Burlington, who died 
many years since. He had five children, of whom three daughters 
-survive him — Ann Eliza, wife of Rev. J. Isham Bliss, Caroline M., 
wife of Hon. B. B. Smalley, and Miss Frances A. Ba.xter. After 
leaving the office of collector of revenue his health gradually failed 
him until 1870 when he was prostrated by a shock of jjaralysis, 
and in 1874 he had another and fatal attack. 



LEVI B. VILAS. 

From Mistorv of Picnch and Bar of Wisconsin. 

AMONG the many distinguished members of the early bar of 
Wisconsin who have passed from earth to be succeeded by a 
new generation in the profession, no one was marked by stronger 
powers, or more characteristic virtues, in his professional and pri- 
vate life than the late Judge Levi B. Vilas of Madison. 

Judge Vilas was born F'ebruary 25, 181 1, in Sterling, Lamoille 
county, Vt., a rugged section well calculated to develop the physical 
and intellectual strength, and the integrity, industry and ability 
which so impressed his character, and distinguished him in all his 
work in life. He was ambitious in his youth, and having received 
an academic education, entered upon a collegiate course of instruc- 
tion, but, by too persistent and constant application to his studies, 
his health became impaired, and he was compelled to forego the 
completion of his collegiate course. After a thorough study of the 
law, to which he devoted himself with his usual energy and indus- 
try, he was admitted to the bar at St. Albans, Vt., in 1833, and 
practiced his profession at Morristown, Johnson and Chelsea in 
that state, for a period of eighteen years. At the start he took a 
leading position at the bar, and during all this time he enjoyed a 
large and lucrative practice, extending throughout the state. En- 
countering an able, learned and accomplished bar, he diligently 
applied himself to his work, anil won and maintained a professional 
reputation for ability, integrity, and learning of the highest order, 
which gave him a conspicuous place in the front rank of the most 
eminent members of the bar. The reports of the supreme court 
of that .state during the period of his practice there attest the 
extcnsiveness of his business, the varied character of the legal 



I06 r.IOGRAPHY OF THE BAR 

questions which he argued in the causes in that court in which he 
was engaged, and bear witness to the great ability, learning, and 
energy with which he presented and argued them in that tribunal, 
then noted and distinguished for the eminent and able jurists who 
filled and adorned its bench. 

Judge Vilas at an early age took part in politics, and was chosen 
to many positions of trust and honor in his native state. In 1835 
he was elected from Johnson to the state constitutional convention, 
and represented that town in the legislature in 1836 and 1837, and 
in the latter year was elected by the legislature one of the state 
commissioners of the deaf, dumb and blind, and during the same 
period he held the office of judge of probate. He removed to 
Chelsea in 1838, and represented that town in the legislature in 
1840, f84i, 1842 and 1843, during which time he served on the 
judiciary committee, the last year as its chairman. He was elected 
state senator from Orange county in 1845, and re-elected in 1846, 
in which year he was unanimously chosen president fro tempore of 
the senate, although the senators of his political party were but a 
small minority of that body. He also held the office of judge of 
probate in Orange county for three years, and in 1850 represented 
Chelsea in the state constitutional convention. In 1844 he was the 
democratic candidate for congress against Jacob Collamer, and in 
1848 was supported by the democrats of the legislature for United 
States senator against William Upham, but was defeated for these 
high offices, as his political party was in the minority in that state. 

In 1 85 1 Judge Vilas removed with his family to Wisconsin, and 
settled at Madison, where he continued to reside until his death. 
Here he at once took the high position as a citizen to which his 
abilities, experience, and reputation entitled him. Having acquired 
a comfortable fortune, he retired in 1856 from the field of profes- 
sional labor, and never again resumed the practice of the law. He 
represented the Madison assembly district in the legislature in the 
years 1855, 1868 and 1873, during which time he zealously labored 
for the advancement of the welfare of his constituents, and faith- 
fully represented and promoted the interests of his district, and in 
the last year of his service as a member of the assembly received 
the votes of the democratic members for speaker of the assembly. 
He was elected mayor of the city of Madison in April, 1861, with- 
out opposition, and held that office for one year, in the discharge 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. IO7 

of which trust he exhibited the same qualities of firmness, iiule- 
pendence, integrity, and abihty which distinguished him in the 
administration of every duty, ])ublic or private, which he assumed. 
He was appointed by Gov. Salomon draft commissioner in the war 
for the union in 1862, and discharged the pecuHarly difficult duties 
of that position with such ability and impartiality as to receive the 
approval and commendation of all parties. He was a firm and con- 
sistent friend of the cause of liberal education, and, in a service of 
twelve years as a regent of the State University, ably and loyally 
supported and encouraged the friends of that institution, and 
labored diligently, persistently, and effectively during the trying 
times of its early life and history, to establish and maintain the 
university on a firm basis, and to make it what it was designed and 
intended to be by the act of congress granting the lands for its 
support and maintenance. In proof of his steadfast devotion to 
the uni\'ersity, he gave to it for instruction, discipline, and training 
in its halls of learning his five sons, all of whom pursued there 
their collegiate course, and graduated with honor to themselves and 
to the institution. 

Judge Vilas possessed a strong physical organization, and, until 
a short time before his death, enjoyed robust health. His personal 
presence was fine and commanding. His powers of mind, naturally 
active and vigorous, improved and developed by thorough discipline 
and generous training, impelled by an ardent and almost vehement, 
though not impulsive temperament, and supported by a strength of 
will and persistency of purpose that faltered at no obstacles and 
yielded to no opposition, united with a cool, clear, and discriminat- 
ing judgment, which led him to quickly, but carefully and consid- 
erately, examine and decide all questions which were submitted to 
his determination, made him a strong, able, and positive man, sure 
and sound in his conclusions, an able, safe and successful counselor, 
and in public and private life a man of great usefulness, power and 
influence. In all the public and private enterprises which affected 
the interests of the community in which he dwelt, he was foremost 
among their promoters and advocates, discouraged at no obstacles 
which to many seemed insuperable, but combating and overcoming 
all apparent diflficulties by his sagacity, energy, and strength of 
will, which seemed to gain new force and vigor by encountering 
opposition, he never rested from his work until success was e.xtri- 



I08 BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR. 

cated from apparent defeat, and the object and purpose sought to 
be obtained were successfully accomplished. Nor was he only lib- 
eral in his labors for the accomplishment of such purpose ; he also 
contributed generously from his means to give success to the enter- 
prises which he advocated, and for which he labored to advance the 
interests and promote the welfare of the city in which he had his 
home. 

He was strict and punctilious in meeting and performing all his 
duties and obligations, public or private, and required a like degree 
of promptness and fidelity from others. All his dealings in the 
affairs of life were guided and marked by unswerving integrity and 
unwavering fidelity to duty, and he had little tolerance for a disre- 
gard of those principles and qualities by others. He believed that 
infidelity to public trust was moral treason to the state ; and in his 
performance of the duties pertaining to a long list of important 
public trusts committed to his care, during a long and useful life, 
his fidelity, integrity, and patriotism as a citizen and public servant 
were so conspicuously exhibited, that they were universally conceded 
to be beyond question and above the breath of suspicion. 

In 1837 he was married to Esther G. Smilie, a daughter of Nathan 
Smilie of Cambridge, Vt., a lady of rare character and possessed 
of marked womanly power and accomplishments, whose counsel and 
prudent judgment, with remarkable gentleness and grace of man- 
ner, united with strength of character, greatly aided him in all his 
successful work. 

Judge Vilas was essentially a kind-hearted man. His home was 
broad and generous, and he was faithful to the interests and require- 
ments of his family, and careful and liberal in the education and 
training of his children, to whose proper and rational development 
and success he was devoted. He was kind to his neighbors, and 
cordial, genial, and hospitable to his friends and acquaintances. He 
was fond of society, and in conversation entertaining and instruct- 
ive. His society was attractive, not only on account of the solidity 
of his judgment and the breadth of his information, but for his 
keen appreciation and remarkable power of illustration by appro- 
priate anecdote and story. He was a careful observer of events 
and a keen judge of men and character, quickly and intuitively 
forming his judgment, and rarely failing in the correctness of his 
conclusions, and his opinion upon all [practical questions of business 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. lOQ 

in public or pri\'ate concerns was always received and regarded with 
the greatest respect and consideration. 

He was kind and sympathetic to the poor, cheerfully lending a 
helping hand to those whom he found worthy of assistance, and 
many an unfortunate poor person in the city of his residence remem- 
bers with gratitude the timely succor and encouragement afforded 
him by Judge Vilas when aid was necessary to success. 

In his religious views Judge Vilas was intelligent, broad and 
liberal. He had read and carefully studied the scriptures, and few 
men were more familiar than he with their teachings, lessons and 
examples. But he read and regarded them with a broad and jjhilo- 
sophical spirit as sacred history, to be interpreted and understood 
in the light of reason and philosophy, unfettered in his judgment 
or appreciation of their teachings or information by any narrow 
view, and without an attempt to warp or bend them to fit any pre- 
conceived theory or plan. Although he was a member of no church 
organization, he was firm and unshaken in his belief in the existence 
of a divine creator, and showed in all the acts and dealings of his 
daily life his appreciation of his responsibility and duty. His 
religion was manifested in the morality and uprightness of his life 
and dealings with all men. 

He died at his home in Madison on February 6, 1879, universally 
mourned by the community. His widow and five children survive 
him. The action taken after his death by the civic authorities of 
that city, the legislature of the state, and by the supreme court, 
and the private grief of his numerous warm personal friends 
throughout the state, attest the high regard in which he was held 
by them during life, and their keen appreciation of the loss sus- 
tained by his sudden and premature death. His remains were 
interred in Forest Hill cemetery near Madison, the scene of the 
labors of his latter life. 



SEBASTIAN F. TAYLOR. 

THE life of Judge Taylor, like that of many others, whose rep- 
utations are founded upon success in the practice of the law, 
presents no events of prominent or startling interest. His position 
was not won in a day, and I cannot look back to any ])articular era 

in his life as the beginning of his success or as its culminating 
15 



no BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR 

point. It has been the result of no single achievement, but of a 
life marked by untiring industry and unimpeached integrity, and 
illustrated by piety, philanthropy, and commanding talent. Judge 
Taylor was born at South Hero, Grand Isle county, Vt., December 
24, 1808, and was the son of David and Helen (Phelps) Taylor. 
His father was a physician and surgeon, and served as such in the 
war of 181 2. Soon after the war he deceased, leaving a widow and 
nine children in almcst destitute circumstances. 

Our subject attended the schools of his native island until he 
was about twelve years of age, when he was bound out to a black- 
smith. From the first, work at the bellows and anvil was extremely 
distasteful to him, and he soon left it and engaged to carry the mail 
from his native island to Burlington in a row boat. He was natu- 
rally a student, and as he had opportunity was continually reading 
and studying, and he soon began to teach school in the districts of 
the county. He studied law, and was admitted to the bar about 
1832, and immediately commenced practice at Greensboro, in the 
county of Orleans. In 1833 he was married to Judith Kelley, 
daughter of Erastus Kelley of Peacham, Vt., and in 1835 removed 
to Conneaut, Ohio, and opened an office for the practice of the law. 
He early took an interest in political matters, and in 1840 was 
especially active in support of Gen. Harrison, the whig candidate 
for president. The next year he was chosen a representative from 
Ashtabula county to the state legislature, and was one of the whig 
members who, in a body, resigned their seats in 1842, as the only 
means of defeating the scandalous "gerrymander" of congressional 
districts proposed by the democratic majority. In 1843 Judge Tay- 
lor removed to Milan, where he remained until 1866, when he 
removed to Sandusky, which was his place of residence until his . 
death. In 1S56 he was elected judge of common pleas for the sub- 
division embracing Ottawa, Huron, and Erie counties, and was 
re-elected in 1861. After his term of office expired he resumed 
the practice of his profession, and continued diligently at work 
until near his death, which occurred October i, 1882. Judge Tay- 
lor was a man remarkable for different characteristics ; first of all 
was conscientious fidelity to conviction. Few men are found more 
true to duty, regardless of personal consequences, than was he. 
Hence he had a position on every question that divided his fellow- 
citizens, and that position was rarely wrong. Especially in matters 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. I I I 

of murals and religion was he early and prominent in defense of 
what his judgment decided to be right. The cause of temperance 
ever enlisted his earnest su]5port. Throughout his active life he 
was a Christian, adorning his profession with a consistent record. 
As a lawyer he was faithful alike to his client and the right, care- 
fully discouraging cases which his judgment could not approve as 
just. 

He was industrious to a high degree, and painstaking to the 
utmost detail of business entrusted to him. As a judge his service 
was highly acceptable, his ability, watchfulness, and patient bearing 
co-operating to the satisfaction of bar and litigants. He was a 
friend true and faithful, whose consistency was proverbial. 



ELBRIDGE GERRY JOHNSON. 

From an Address delivered in the Circuit Court of Peoria, 111., by Judge Henry B. Hopkins, in 
memory of the late Elbridge G. Johnson. 

ELBRIDGE GERRY JOHNSON was born at Rath, N. H., 
December 14, 1814, and was the youngest but one of a family 
of twelve children, who all died before him except Moses, the 
youngest, who still resides on the home farm at Bath. 

The father was a stalwart, strong-minded, well-to-do New Eng- 
land farmer. He owned and cultivated a square mile of the pic- 
turesque, rugged, and stony soil of Bath, and counted upon his 
family of boys to man it. They were largely endowed with the 
brain and muscle of the young New Englander of the olden time, 
and the father saw in them only the possibilities of the thrifty, 
honest yeomanry of the future. In this respect they generally filled 
the parental ambition, but not so with Elbridge G. His boyish 
mind became thoughtful, and turned to books and study more than 
to building stone-wall, swinging the grain cradle, the sickle and 
scythe, and the kindred arts of primitive husbandry. In this he 
found neither aid nor comfort from his father, but he was quietly 
aided and abetted by his mother and sisters. He worked on the 
farm until he was fourteen years old, but always under protest. A 
noble-hearted old Scotch Presbyterian clergyman, whom I well 
remember, (Elder Southerland), used to bring him books and foster 
his young ambition for learning. The boy's determination to pre- 



112 niOGRArHV OF THE RAR 

pare himself for professional life met with so little sympathy that 
he was obliged to leave home, without aid or blessing, to qualify 
himself as best he could. 

At that time the adjacent portions of the townships of Peacham, 
Barnet and Ryegate, in Caledonia county, Vt., were settled by a 
colony of Scotch Presbyterians, called Covenanters, and among 
them were a few clergymen, accomplished scholars, thoroughly edu- 
cated in the universities of Europe. Of these was the Rev. 
Thomas Goodwillie, a talented and eloquent preacher and fine 
scholar. He lived upon a rugged farm which he tilled with his own 
hands, as did his parishioners. He always had about him a class 
of students, young men whom he undertook to board and lodge, in 
a humble way, and prepare for college, upon condition of their 
working for him on the farm two days in the week. P"or a consid- 
erable time Mr. Johnson was with this gentleman upon these terms, 
and many are the amusing and characteristic anecdotes I have 
heard him tell of discussions between himself and the reverend 
gentleman upon scholastic, scriptural and theological points as to 
which, happily, the pupil and preceptor rarely agreed. 

He commenced to teach school winters at si.xteen years old, and 
returned to work on the farm during the vacations of Newbury 
Seminary, where he was pursuing academical studies. When sent 
into the field to plow it was no uncommon thing to find him under 
a tree absorbed in his Latin text, while the oxen were quietly graz- 
ing in the fence corners. 

Mr. Johnson afterwards located at Derby Line, Vt., on the bor- 
der of Canada. He read law with the late distinguished Judge 
Redfield, and was admitted to the bar when twenty years old. His 
early professional life was full of brilliancy and promise. Hardly a 
young man of his time in New England was more flattered with 
predictions of an eminent future. A close and early friendship was 
formed between him and his fellow-student, Luke P. Poland, after- 
wards one of the supreme judges of Vermont, and later United 
States senator from that state, and now a member of the national 
house of representatives. This friendship was kejjt up as long as 
Mr. Johnson lived. He also numbered among his personal friends 
other names which have become eminent : Senator Samuel S. Phelps, 
Judge Redfield, Chief Ju.stice Royce, the Hon. Portus Baxter and 
others. Mr. Johnson and Judge Poland, while they were students 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. II3 

together, agreed that each sIkiuIcI be present to hear the other's 
maiden speech in court. Poland was admitted a year first, and 
Johnson was present to hear and admire his first speech. After- 
wards, when Johnson came to make his first speech, Poland was 
there, and only a few years ago that magnanimous gentleman, in 
speaking of the circumstances to friends of Mr. Johnson, said : 
" I thought I made a good speech, but when I came to hear John- 
son I concluded my place was on a back seat." 

Mr. Johnson practiced law at Derby Line until he came to Peoria, 
where he arrived July i, 1850. He was while there sought after 
and admired, as well for his eminent social as professional qualities. 
Among his talented friends at Derby Line was Dr. Camp, an Epis- 
copal clergyman. The doctor, after spending a social Saturday 
evening with Mr. Johnson, rose, saying, " I must go now, or my 
Sunday sermon will not be prepared." Johnson replied, "Why 
do you prepare your sermons .' It is just as I told you, ministers 
have no job compared with lawyers. When I have to speak I have 
no chance to prepare. I must be always ready, and meet my adver- 
sary face to face." The doctor said, " You would find it a different 
thing if you had to speak from a given te.xt." Johnson said, 
" Doctor, give me a text, and I will write you a sermon if you will 
preach it to-morrow, provided you think it a good one." The doc- 
tor gave him a blind, ambiguous te.xt from Leviticus, and Johnson 
wrote a sermon and handed it to the doctor early next morning, 
and he preached it in church that day. It was a powerful produc- 
tion, and to this day some of the people of Derby Line remember 
that sermon. I have heard it said there was not a dry eye in the 
congregation, and that at the close of the services the people went 
forward to the chancel and congratulated the preacher upon his 
extraordinary sermon. Afterwards the fact that it was the dis- 
course of the lay brother got to the ears of the people, and made 
the good doctor no end of trouble. 

In the early part of Mr. Johnson's residence here he held the 
office of state's attorney for one term, and later served one term in 
the state legislature as a member of the house of representatives, 
and soon after the enactment by congress of the late bankrupt law 
he was appointed register in bankruptcy for this congressional dis- 
trict, and held the office until the law was repealed. He discharged 
the duties of these various offices with unquestioned ability and 



n4 lilOCiRAPHY OF THE BAR 

faithfulness. He was law partner, first for a short time with the 
late Judge E. N. Powell, then with the late H. O. Merriman, then 
with the late George S. Blakeley, then with myself for thirteen 
years, ending March, 1878, then with A. C. Hewett, then with 
George B. Foster until within about two years of his death. 

Mr. Johnson came here a stranger, in middle life, with a wife and 
three children, without friends and without money. Business was 
limited and competition strong. Purple and Manning, and Metcalf, 
and Knowlton and Merriman, and Peters and Powell, and Ryan 
and Ballance, and Sanger and Cooper, all stood in the gateways of 
business to intercept its streams before they should reach the new 
comer. But his address and abilities soon gained for him a foot- 
hold among them, and won their confidence and esteem. 

He was a man of dignified and imposing personal appearance, 
with nature's emphatic stamp of superiority. He was all his life 
under the dominion of strong powers, both mental and physical. 
His intellect belonged to the type of the colossal. On account 
both of the largeness of his powers and of his many peculiarities, 
it is difficult to measure him by the standards by which we ordi- 
narily judge of men. Although he did not attain that distinction 
which his early life seemed to indicate, in the judgment of his 
gifted cotemporaries, yet he always had in himself all the qualities 
of greatness and power which justified that promise, and he needed 
only the occasion and sufficient force of impulse to have quite real- 
ized it. Owing partly to the time, the place, and the people of his 
location, but chiefly to himself, such distinction was but partly 
realized. 

The truth is, Mr. Johnson was not a sufficient lover of money to 
ever become very rich, he was not sufficiently ambitious to ever 
become very distinguished, he was not sufficiently a specialist to 
ever become the noted man of any one thing ; and he never esti- 
mated highly enough all that the world can give or promise to sac- 
rifice himself sufficiently to win the equivocal crown of its favoritism. 
He always had a great reserve of powers not given to any of those 
things. They were not the chief objects of his thought, nor the 
chief cravings of his nature. He could never quite help seeing 
the harlequin's cap through its diadems of royalty. Kven his pro- 
fession never awakened all his interest nor commanded all his 
jiowers. 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. I 15 

He was the least known, by those who knew him, of any man 
among us. Circumstances and the peculiarities of his temperament 
led him to encase his real being in what he intended should be an 
impenetrable wall of defence against all mankind, with only such 
loop-holes as he intended to look out at, and intended the world to 
look in at. The extreme nervous sensitiveness of his nature, of 
which the world knew so little, led him to put on an exterior of 
hardness, gruffness, forbiddingness, indifference, stolidity, anything 
but injustice, as a panoply against the woundings, irritations, gross- 
ness, neglect, blunders, malice, or intrusion of the world he must 
encounter, but which could not, and would not understand or 
respect a nature which was not of it. Within he was all suscepti- 
bility, delicacy, tenderness, sympathy, sentiment, imagination, 
poetry, idealty. Without was the cold, hard, fortified wall, which 
was transparent only to those who had known him long and well. 
While in his intercourse with the world his method was frank, 
ready, direct, practical and politic, he shrank, almost bashfully, 
from any real observation of himself. He could not endure being 
looked at, much less being looked into. While he was strong and 
patient under the burden of heavy responsibilities, he was restive 
and easily irritated by petty annoyances. 

Upright and honest, he had no patience with tricks or duplicity. 
His opinions upon social, moral, religious, political and personal 
topics were most independent. They were formed and advanced 
with the utmost disregard of other people's views, of popular sen- 
timent, and of formulated theories. I never heard him speak 
reverently of but one man — that was Daniel Webster. He knew 
no such thing as the fear or awe of public or private judgment 
upon his acts or his motives. In terms direct, positive, emphatic 
or blunt, he spoke out his convictions on such matters everywhere. 
Behind the shelter of an external indifference was a nature so sen- 
sitive and delicate that almost everything either hurt him or con- 
soled him. A bundle of nerves, a tissue of sensibilities, a battery 
of forces, pain and pleasure were the ever vibrating tides of his 
emotions. His mental vision, on the practical side, was rapid, keen, 
searching, far-reaching, and he rarely failed to discern real motives, 
and to measure men and things accurately. On its psychological 
side it was wide of range, free of restraint, true to the sentiment 
of beauty, open to companionship and loyal to truth. 



I l6 BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR. 

His learninj^, aside from his profession, was general rather than 
critical, and extended to almost every branch of science, history, 
invention, discovery, philosophy and speculation. His manner was 
cordial, his heart large and liberal, his conversation vivacious and 
interesting, often brilliant and witty, often sarcastic, pungent, iron- 
ical, full of pointed anecdote and ready, sharp retort, and pervaded 
with a kind of careless, impulsive light-heartedness. Yet he was 
essentially a thoughtful, grave-tempered and sad person. With a 
nature like his, the bereavements, struggles and disappointments 
which fell to his lot could hardly have left him otherwise. His 
early wife, to whom he was married at the age of twenty-one, died 
instantly at the end of eighteen months ; his second wife lived but 
five years, and a beautiful boy whom he idolized, died here in 1856. 
And a nature, always too painfully sensitive for the world's rough 
contact, became more and more chafed, irritated, worn, weary and 
sore. With a beautiful home, family, friends, affections and com- 
forts about him, he was too isolated and too sad of temperament. 

His sentiment of the beautiful underwent no degeneration. He 
carried it, in its youthful freshness, all his life long. Flowers and 
poetry were his twin angels. They fanned away his cares with 
their peaceful wings, and softened his hardest hours with the sweet- 
ness of their singing. Nature was always his friend and confidant. 
Whatever his mood, happiness came in with the free air, with the 
light, the sky, the bird song and the sunshine, and with mother 
earth and the beautiful children upon her bosom, vegetation, fruits 
and flowers. He once called my attention to the petunias all along 
the paths of his yard, saying, "They are humble things, but they 
will look up to you with their faces of beauty all the season 
through." 

From his youth he took delight in and and occasionally cultivated 
poetry. The lines penned by him were generally of the order of 
the Hudibrastic verse, made for a temporary occasion or amuse- 
ment ; sarcastic, rhymed and rythmical hits at some current folly 
or comical or ridiculous personality ; witty, apt, sharp as a dart and 
straight to the mark. But occasionally his pen pleaded respite 
from repression and flowed with a thoughtful, gentle, sombre har- 
mony. 

I have access to only one of his jiocms. It was written in his 
later years and just come to my hand. It chances to be in accord- 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. II7 

ancc with what I have said of him. F^specially of the thoughtful, 
gentle spirit behind the earthworks he had thrown up to battle off 
a heedless world ; and of the hunger and thirst of the soul for more 
than the poor abundance of all the world can give ; and of that 
beseeching of the heart, which is more than prayer, for the boon 
of the weary — peace and rest. 
In the poem occur these lines : 

Fm floating on life's ceaseless tide. 

On life's flowing, rushing river; 
My crazy bark as yet doth ride. 

But many seams are opening wide ; 

'Tis sinking fast, I cannot hide ; 
I see the hungry waves and shiver. 

I feel their damp and chilly breast. 

I feel their rigor in my soul ; 
I see the foam upon their crest. 
And know beneath is certain rest. 
1 know this end of life's behest. 
That peace will with the waters roll. 

Above my head, submerge my life. 
Wash out the fever of the past 

And close the weary, constant strife. 

The ills that cut as with a knife. 

With which our pilgrimage is rife. 
And bring repose, perhaps, at last. 

Where shall we turn when age has come. 

When greenest paths of life are past. 
When to the ear the song is dumb. 

And films before the sight are cast. 
When love's a faint remembered thing, 

A flickered light of former years, 
A sunbeam on the wild dove's wing? 

All things that e'er have lived have died; 
Their dust lies peaceful side by side. 
The soothest thing for mortal woes. 
Is endless, undisturbed repose. 
Whate'er we dread, that fate is best 
Which brings the weary rest, sweet rest. 

The future yet may open wide 

Its gates of light and love forever. 

With naught to chain the spirit's stride. 

With naught to grieve with hopes that lied. 

With naught the truth from souls to hide. 

Beyond death's darkly-rolling river. 
16 



Il8 BIOGRAPHY OF THE liAK 

No choice ; we lived, we loved, we grieved. 

We've hoped and lost and hoped again. 
We've trusted oft, been oft deceived. 
We've doubted oft, perchance believed, 
Begotten offspring, been bereaved. 
Our web by fatal hands was weaved 

With threads of joy and woof of pain ; 

Why wish that .such a life remain? 

The song were best without refrain. 

I know, I know whereof I write. 

That some true souls who grieved on earth 

Are living still, all robed in white. 

Whose eyes now beam with angel light 

Reflected from their inward right. 
Sweet souls who've had their second birth. 

If such may live a life so bright. 

Why may not we who grope in night? 

No picture of Mr. Johnson would be true to him wliich did not 
show the light thrown upon his life and character by his views upon 
the subject of the life to come. His mind was emphatically -of the 
type called skeptical. Belief upon any subject, human or divine, 
without palpable reason or tangible proof, was a thing impossible to 
his mind. From youth he neither could nor would adopt any opin- 
ion which did not come with reason that he could comprehend or 
proof he could perceive. As a consequence he was not only a phil- 
osophical skeptic, but a universal disbeliever. Yet this man, in the 
maturity of his intellect and in the meridian of his life came to 
have such a confidence, such an assurance of the future life as I 
have never seen in another. To him the opinion of others on the 
subject was nothing ; the policy of acquiescing in popular doctrines 
was nothing ; the power of anathema was nothing ; the bias of 
an early education was nothing ; preaching and teaching were 
nothing, and revelation was nothing. Yet in a way of his own, 
or at least by means addressed to his own comprehension, he 
reached such a state of certainty that he should enter upon life 
after death as to doubt it no more than he doubted when the evening: 
faded with the setting sun that the morning would brighten with 
his rising. The light of this conviction gave color to his whole 
life. Every day he strove to make his own soul more worthy to be 
a bright denizen of a brighter land. 



OKLKANS COUNTY, VERMONT. I I9 

FRANKLIN JOHNSON. 

FRANKLIN JOHNSON was the son of Ezra A. and Annie 
(Hunt) Johnson, and was born in Troy, Vt., May 8, 1809. He 
was educated at the common schools and academies and at 
Yale College. He studied law with E. H. Starkweather at Iras- 
burgh, and was admitted to the bar at the December term, 1834, 
and soon went West and settled at Monroe, Mich., where he 
engaged in the practice of his profession. He was elected prose- 
cuting attorney for Monroe county in 1856, and re-elected in 1858. 
In i860 he was elected judge of probate for the term of four years, 
and in the spring of 1863 was elected judge of the judicial circuit 
of Michigan, a position which he held six years, making an official 
career covering a period of fourteen consecutive years in spite of 
the fact that he was a republican in politics, while the county was 
democratic. Upon retiring from the bench he resumed the prac- 
tice of his profession, and in the spring of 1870 was elected attor- 
ney for the city of Monroe. He died Tuesday, October 11, 1870. 
At a meeting of the Monroe, Hillsdale and Lenawee bar, held on 
the 1 2th day of October, 1870, the following preamble and resolu- 
tions were adopted, which conclusively show with what esteem his 
associates regarded him : 

"When an upright man die.s the community suffers, his friends mourn, his 
peers and as.sociates miss his place in their ranks, and all unite in expression of 
regret for the common bereavement. 

Wherefore, we, the members of the bar of Monroe, Lenawee and Hillsdale 
counties, moved by the death of Hon. Franklin Johnson, for nearly forty years 
one of our fraternity, do hereby declare and re.solve 

First. That, with no ordinary feeling do we record the decease of one in 
whom were most eminently combined a free love for his profession, a full sense of 
its dignity and worth, and a keen appreciation of the essential justice that lies at 
the foundation of all proper administration of law. 

Second. That, in our relation with him as associate, opponent or adviser, he 
was honorable, his word was as good as his bond, his verbal as his stipulation. 
He despised a trick ; he abhorred a pettifogger ; he loathed a legal rascal ; he 
sought for success in the inherent justice of his case or the right of the law. He 
was a sound lawyer, he was an honest man, and he commanded respect from 
court and compeer alike. He deserved it for his integrity and ability. 

TlHKi). That, as a judge he was candid and impartial, and has won and estab- 
lished in his administration on the bench for a period of si.x years, a record of 
which any man might be proud. 



I20 p,ioc;kaphv of the bar 

Fourth. That, out of respect for his memory we will attend his funeral in a 
body, and that the clerk of this meeting be instructed to deliver to his afflicted 
widow a copy of these proceedings, and cause the same to be published in the 
county papers." 



H. M. WEAD. 

By Hon. E. G. Johnson. 



THE subject of thi,s biography was born June i, iSio, at Shel- 
don, Franklin county, Vt. His father, Samuel Wead, was a 
country merchant at that place, having a large business which he 
conducted until his death in 1831. 

H. M. Wead began the study of the law in the office of a lawyer 
at Richford, Vt., before he was twenty years of age, subsequently 
removed to Malone, N. Y., and entered the office of Azro Hawkins, 
and was admitted to the Franklin county, N. Y., bar. Shortly after 
his admission he returned to Vermont and entered the office of a 
lawyer at St. Albans, where he remained in legal study nearly a 
year, and was admitted to practice in the state of Vermont. He 
left Vermont again soon after and spent some two years in the 
state of Ohio, and returned to Vermont on the death of his father, 
which occurred about that time. Soon afterwards, about 1833, Mr. 
Wead formed a partnership with Charles Story of Coventry, Vt., 
where he remained two or three years. Some of the old inhabi- 
tants of Orleans county will no doubt remember the celebrated 
case of John B. Allen vs. Parkhurst and P'uller, for false imprison- 
ment and forcible abduction of plaintiff from his residence in Pot- 
ton, Canada, to the jail of Orleans county. That action was 
commenced by Mr. Wead, and carried on through several exciting 
trials with great energy and with the indomitable perseverance 
which was characteristic of him during his whole life. It was on 
the first trial of the case at the June term of Orleans county court 
that the writer first made the acquaintance of Mr. Wead, which 
continued until his death at Peoria in 1876. 

At this time he was in the full vigor of his youth, strong and 
powerful physically, ambitious, ardent, enthusiastic, and equally 
powerful of mind and will. Almost every advocate of any stand- 
ing in the circuit was engaged on one side or the other of this 
case. 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 121 

Mr. Wead opened the case for the plaintiff with an argument of 
some hours and with great ability. There was no dispute about 
the law, and really little about the facts ; no doubt of the utterly 
unwarranted abduction of the plaintiff, but unfortunately the char- 
acter of the plaintiff prevented all sympathy for him and his 
wrongs. The public could not approve of the legal outrage, but 
they could not find any great sympathy for the plaintiff. I well 
remember the scene, the eloquent speech of the advocate, and the 
apathy of the audience as to the plaintiff's fate. It is now nearly 
half a century since, and neither the venerable judge, nor any one 
of the officers of the court, or attorneys attending the court, ex- 
cept myself, I believe, is now living. 

The celebrated case lingered along through many trials, lasted 
several years after Wead left Orleans county, became a mere ques- 
tion of costs, and finally resulted in a verdict for defendants. The 
plaintiff retired from the position of a martyr to tlie obscurity of 
private life on the classic shores of Potton. 

Mr. Wead, after he left Orleans county, was for some time a 
partner with Gen. Cushman at Guildhall, Vt., afterwards located 
for two or three years at Lancaster, N. H., drifted from thence to 
New Jersey, and from there in 1840 to Lewiston, 111., where he 
became a prominent citizen and lawyer, and rapidly acquired the 
position and distinction to which his ability and energy eminently 
entitled him. In 1847 he was a prominent member of the consti- 
tutional convention of the state of Illinois. In 1S52 he was elected 
judge of the tenth judicial circuit of Illinois, resigned in 1854 and 
removed to the city of Peoria, and resided there until his decease 
in 1877. 

He was liberal in his expenditures, strictly honorable in his busi- 
ness relations, acquired a good estate, and raised a very respectable 
family, to whom he was a generous father and friend. 

His early life was strengthened and developed by the necessity 
of self-reliance and industry, which compelled him to educate and 
support himself, and carve his own way to success without aid. He 
seems never to have found his i)roper field of effort and action 
until he came to Illinois. 

He always stood to his guns, never lowered his flag, never sought 
to win favor by the acts of the demagogue, believed in himself, 
never doubted he was entirely right, and never yielded a i)oint to 



122 IlIOtiRAPHY OF THE BAR 

adverse clamor. What the Rev. David Sutherland said in prayer 
of a somewhat persistent clergyman who was in a controversy with 
his church on matters of discipline, could well have been said of 
Wead. Said he, "O, Lord, thou knowest thy servant is a true ser- 
vant of thine ; but Lord, thou knowest he would as soon brush a 
fly from a brother's nose with a mallet as a feather." 



CHARLES WILLIAMS PRENTISS. 

CHARLES WILLIAMS PRENTISS, the fifth son of Hon. 
Samuel B. Prentiss, was born at Montpelier, Vt., October i8, 
1 812. He received his primary education at the schools of Mont- 
pelier. He entered the University of Vermont and remained there 
one year. He then entered Dartmouth College where he gradu- 
ated. He then entered the office of his father for the study of the 
law ; subsequently he went into the office of the Hon. Isaac F. 
Redfield at Derby, from whose office he was admitted a mem- 
ber of the Orleans county bar June 24, 1835, and immediately com- 
menced the practice of his profession at Irasburgh, where he 
remained until 1843, when he removed to Montpelier. He repre- 
sented Irasburgh in the legislature for 1841 and 1842. He contin- 
ued in practice at Montpelier until 1852, when he removed to New 
York City, and in 1867 to Cleveland, Ohio, where he now resides. 
Until quite recently, at these different places, he has been actively 
engaged in the practice of his profession, and with the highest 
degree of success. 

ELIJAH FARR. 

By HON. C. B. Le.si.IE. 

ELIJAH FARR was born in Thetford, Vt., Augu.st 14, 1808, 
and died July 2, 1845, in his thirty-seventh year. He early 
came to Bradford, and his early days were spent there. He was a 
poor boy, and was bound out for a portion of his minority to a Mr. 
Winship of Bradford. He was ambitious to acquire an education, 
and for that purpose he attended the Bradford Academy, which 
was in those days famous for good teachers and ambitious pupils. 
Mr. Farr was a very good academical scholar. He studied law 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 1 23 

with the late Judge Isaac F. Redfield at Derby Line, and was 
admitted to the bar of Orleans county June 3, 1835. After he was 
admitted to the bar, he directly came to Wells River and formed a 
partnership with Peter Burbank, and after Mr. Burbank's death in 
the winter of 1836, he continued the practice of his profession at 
Wells River until he died in 1845. He was one of Mr. Burbank's 
executors, the other being Zebina Newell, then cashier of the bank 
of Newbury. Mr. Farr succeeded to, and took the law practice of 
the firm of Burbank & Farr. He was a very fine jury advocate, a 
close and logical reasoner, and fluent of speech, using good and 
appropriate language in his arguments. His memory was strong, 
and he hardly ever took minutes of all the testimony when he tried 
causes, only the heads and names of witnesses, and he was able to 
quote the testimony correctly in his arguments. He was a very 
tall and slim man, being six feet five inches in height, and his con- 
stitution was not strong, nor was his health. He was a well-read 
lawyer, and stood high in his profession, both as a lawyer and 
advocate. 

He was state's attorney for Orange county in the years 1839 'i''"^' 
1 841, and state senator for the same county for the years 1843 and 
1844, and he was also postmaster at Wells River for many years. 
In August, 1844, he took cold while trying an important cause at 
Bradford before an auditor or referee, and it settled upon his lungs, 
and he died of consumption the next July. The writer read law in 
his office, and entered into copartnership with him November, 1844, 
which copartnership ended with the death of Mr. Farr. Mr. Farr 
was liberal and public-spirited, using his money freely and for wor- 
thy objects. His estate was not large after paying his debts. He 
was temperate, industrious, capable, and an honest man. In his 
practice, which became large, especially in contested cases, he was 
quite successful. 

Mr. Farr was not a professor of religion, but he was a constant 
attendant at church, and was one of the movers and builders of 
the church at Wells River. He never married. The writer bought 
his office and library, which included the library of Peter Burbank. 

Politically he was a democrat, and as such was elected to the 
offices which he held. He died in the prime of life, and had he 
lived longer I think he would have made a reputation throughout 
tlie whole state as a good and successful lawyer. 



124 BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR. 

DAVID ALLEN SMALLEY. 

Biographical Encyclopedia of Vermont. 

DAVID ALLEN SMALLEY, of Burlington, United States 
District Judge for Vermont, was born in Middlebury, Addi- 
son county, Vt., April 6, 1809. His British ancestors bore the 
name of Smallett. The first of the family who emigrated to the 
new world was Benjamin Smallett or Smalley — as he wrote the 
patronymic — of Dunbarton, Scotland. Arriving in Massachusetts 
in 1687, he was for a short time a member of the Plymouth colony, 
but soon removed to Connecticut, where he died in 1703, leaving 
three sons. Benjamin Smalley, eldest son of the immigrant father, 
was born at Norwich, Conn., in 1693, and died in Salisbury, Conn., 
in 1757. He married Margaret Allen, an aunt of Gen. Ethan 
Allen, the captain of Ticonderoga. Two sons, named Benjamin 
and John, survived him. Benjamin, the elder, was born at Lebanon 
in 1723, and removed from Salisbury, Conn., with his family, in the 
spring of 1773 to that part of the New Hampshire grants now 
known as Middlebury, Vt., where he died in 1807. There he built 
the first log house in the settlement, and there his two children 
were the first victims of death. Imri and Alfred, his sons, sur- 
vived him. Imri married a daughter of Maj. Jonathan Hart of 
Berlin, Conn., who was killed in the defeat of Gen. St. Clair on the 
4th of November, 1791, while leading a bayonet charge intended 
to protect the retreat of the main body. Born in Salisbury, Conn., 
in 1 761, Imri Smalley died at St. Albans, Vt., in 1827, and left two 
sons, bearing the names of Zera and Benjamin H. Zera Smalley 
was born in 1787 and died in 1842. His wife was a granddaughter 
of Maj. Garrett, who was slain in the massacre of Wyoming. He 
himself served as an army surgeon in the war of 18 12. Of his 
three sons David Allen was the eldest. 

Distinguished in his youth by the warmth and kindliness of his 
feelings, by his quick perceptions, retentive memory and personal 
daring, David A. Smalley was the boon leader of his companions. 
While a student in the academy at St. Albans, he achieved lasting 
reputation for numerous mischievous pranks that were characterized 
by the prominence of fun, and the utter absence of recklessness 
and malignity. 

Hoisting a donkey into the belfry of the academy, or drawing 




^. ^ . x>$?^^^.^^^%^ 



OKLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 12$ 

wood upon a sledge for the comfort of a needy widow and her fam- 
ily, were occupations almost equally agreeable to the active and 
sprightly boy. Choosing the profession of law for the future pur- 
suit of life, young Smalley began the requisite studies in the office 
of Smalley & Adams at St. Albans. There, too, he completed 
preparation, and at the age of twenty-two was admitted to the bar 
of Franklin county in April, 1831. Benjamin H. Smalley, the 
senior member of the firm, was his uncle. He died at an advanced 
age in Frelighsburg, Province of Quebec. 

Henry Adams, the younger member, always enjoyed the warmest 
affection of his former pupil, who named his eldest born after that 
gentleman. Mr. Smalley settled in Jericho for professional practice 
soon after Kis admission to the bar, and also discharged the duties 
of postmaster, which office he held from 1832 to 1836. Ability, 
zeal, and success won a constantly increasing clientage and an 
enviable reputation. In 1836 he removed to Lowell, Orleans 
county, and opened an office, but remained there only a few months. 
Thence he repaired to Burlington, which became his permanent 
home. Here a wider field for ambition and energy presented itself 
— a field that he wisely and diligently cultivated. Already he was 
known as an ardent adherent of Gen. Jackson, and as an eloquent 
and effective advocate of that statesman's policy. In the political 
discussions of debating societies, store gatherings and street corner 
groups, he was an influential participant. Nor was he less positive 
and decided in the family circle. His son Bradley — named after 
his grandfather. Col. Bradley Barlow of Fairfield — was thoroughly 
indoctrinated in childhood, has been for many years a leading dem- 
ocrat in Vermont, and was a member of the national democratic 
committee in the last two presidential campaigns. Impulsive, 
earnest and persistent, Mr. Smalley was as active in political as in 
legal affairs, and established high reputation in both departments. 
Gov. Van Ness, afterward United States Minister to Spain, and 
himself, being like-minded, contracted a faithful and life-long friend- 
ship soon after his arrival in Burlington. Law and politics are 
closely allied under any form of government, and particularly under 
the democratic — republican. Each supplements and aids the other. 
In 1842 Mr. Smalley received the compliment of election on the 
democratic ticket to the state senate from Chittenden county. 
17 



126 BIOGRAPHY OF THE HAK 

This was the more remarkable, inasmuch as state and county 
were overwhelmingly whig in point of political preference. Declin- 
ing renomination, he devoted himself with renewed assiduity to 
legal practice. In 1844 he was admitted as a practitioner into the 
United States Supreme Court. In 1847 he was elected chairman 
of the state democratic committee, of which he was a member, and 
in each of the ten following years was re-elected to the same posi- 
tion. To the national democratic conventions of 1844, 1848, 1852 
and 1856, he was a delegate, and in the two latter years was chair- 
man of the Vermont delegation. In the national democratic con- 
vention assembled at Cincinnati in 1856, he was made a member of 
the national committee, and by it was chosen to the chair. Of 
Stephen A. Douglas, his old comrade and school-fellow, who was 
also a native of Addison county, he was a zealous, personal, and 
political friend. Nor was he on terms of less intimacy with Gen. 
Franklin Pierce, who, upon his accession to the chief magistracy in 
1853, tendered to Mr. Smalley the appointment of minister to 
Russia, Spain and Austria, and to the solicitorship of the treasury 
successively. All these honors were declined. He did, however, 
at the earnest solicitation of the president, accept the office of col- 
lector of customs for Vermont, for the reason that its occupancy 
would neither necessitate the abandonment of his large and lucra- 
tive legal practice, nor seriously interfere with its prosecution. 
Railroad enterprise found an efficient helper in Mr. Smalley, one of 
the originators of the Rutland and Burlington railroad company. 
He was also one of its directors and legal counselors. From 1856 
to 1863 he owned all its stock and controlled the corporation. The 
acknowledged leader of the Vermont bar, possessed of the most 
remunerative practice in the state, and collector of customs from 
April, 1853, to January, 1857, his official promotion was simply a 
matter of time and convenience. The election of James Buchanan 
to the presidency in 1856 was largely due to his sagacity and zeal, 
the remarkable powers of organization then displayed elicited keenly 
appreciative applause, and added to his fame as a practical politician 
and prescient statesman. 

In January, 1857, Mr. Smalley accepted a seat on the bench as a 
member of the federal judiciary. Thenceforward he wholly ab- 
stained from participations in party politics. Neither would he 
have anything to do with political appointments. Even advice on 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 1 27 

the subject was refused to the administration; because, as he wrote 
in explanation, judicial activity in partisan politics is most indeco- 
rous and improper, tends to tlie disrepute of the judiciary, and 
degrades its weight and authority. His sound and judicious opin- 
ions on this topic were concordant with the action of the national 
senate, which unanimously confirmed his nomination without the 
formality of reference to a committee. Higher testimony of legis- 
lative confidence it was impossible to give. 

As a judge David Allen Smalley is best known to his country. 
His twenty years of service covered the crisis of its history. With 
its political convulsions, its readjustments, and its subsequent mar- 
velous developments he is intimately identified. He held the bal- 
ance of justice with steady and even hand. Neither clashing 
opinions, nor factious rage, nor military collisions, affected the cool, 
clear judgment of the distinguished jurist. The supremacy of con- 
stitutional law was to him an axiomatic truth, and all things must 
be subordinated to it. Tyranny on the one hand and lawlessness 
on the other were equally held in check. This sternly grand impar- 
tiality clothed his decisions with weightiest authority, and com- 
manded the gravest and most unquestioning respect. Especially 
was this the case in relation to the slave trade, as carried on by 
merchants from the port of New York. While presiding over the 
United States Circuit Court in the city of New York, in Decem- 
ber, i860, in charging the grand jury he said : 

"You will probably be called upon to investigate alleged infrac- 
tions of the laws for the suppression of the slave trade. If courts 
or jurors fail to do so, they in turn become offenders against the 
law, faithless, perjured guardians of the great trusts reposed in 
them, and deserving of the most condign punishment. Within the 
last three months more than three thousand miserable human 
beings have been taken by American cruisers from slave vessels 
sailing from the port of New York, The laws against it are suffi- 
ciently plain, explicit, and severe to put a speedy end to it if vigor- 
ously and vigilantly enforced. It must be expected that the 
degraded, bad men who engage in or aid and abet this horrible 
trade (for none others do), will resort to any species of chicanery, 
fraud, and falsehood to escape detection, cover up their infamy and 
avoid punishment. Those who will in any way be privy to it will 
resort to any crime, however atrocious, to conceal it. Such is 



128 lilOGRAPHV OF THE HAR 

human nature, and a knowledge of it should be met by the most 
unyielding determination, vigilance, and vigor of the officers of the 
law to ascertain the truth, point out the criminals and bring them 
to justice." 

The propriety, force, and necessity of this noble charge com- 
manded the cordial praise of the best portion of the metropolitan 
press. The New York Times of December 27, i860, quoting the 
formally enunciated opinion of Judge Roosevelt, United States 
prosecuting officer for that district, that public sentiment in regard 
to the slave trade had undergone a change, and that the national 
executive would not, under any possible circumstances, permit a 
conviction for this offense in the first degree, to be followed by the 
punishment prescribed by law, said of it : 

"It is a bold, clear, and emphatic pronunciamento against the 
doctrines of District Attorney Roosevelt. This is the first intima- 
tion that they (the slaver commercial houses), will have received for 
many years that a judge of the United States is holding court in 
the city of New York who cannot be deterred from doing his 
whole duty. If we understand Judge Smalley rightly, he will also 
do his utmost, within the limits of his office, toward directing the 
attention and action of the grand jury against the millionaire and 
wealthy merchants who have accumulated, and are still trying to 
increase, their fortunes in this unholy business." 

The effect of this charge by a conscientious, pronounced and 
eminent democratic judge was irhmediate and decided. On the 
14th of January, 1861, when the secessionists had fired upon the 
steamer that attempted to convey troops and supplies to Fort 
Sumpter, then under the command of Maj. Anderson, Judge 
Smalley charged the grand jury in the United States Circuit Court 
at New York on the law of treason and misprision of treason. 
Certain merchants and residents of that city had shipped arms and 
munitions of war, and also supplies, to the seceded states, after 
their commission of overt treason by firing upon a national vessel. 
After stating that civil war existed in portions of the Union, and 
that the confederates were guilty of "high treason by levying war," 
and that neither states, nor the people of any state, can absolve 
themselves or others from allegiance to the United States govern- 
ment, he added : 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 1 29 

"What amounts to adhering and giving aid and comfort to our 
enemies? It is somewhat difficult in all cases to define; but cer- 
tain it is that furnishing them with arms or munitions of war, ves- 
sels or other means of transportation, or any material which will 
aid the traitors in carrying out their traitorous purposes, with a 
knowledge that they are intended for such purposes, does come 
within the provisions of the act." 

The effect of this charge was electric. It crystallized the chaotic 
sentiments of unionists into definite and solid opinion, and also 
evidenced the fact that partizan distinctions were annihilated in 
presence of danger to the integrity of the Union. Coming from a 
jurist of his political antecedents, it wrought with all the greater 
force. The newly elected president, Abraham Lincoln, warmly 
thanked him for his action, and congratulated the country that in 
such a fearful crisis it was blessed with so fearless and independent 
a judge. The press of both political parties generally commended 
his charge. Dissenters like the New York Illustrated News, which 
said, " Although we have respectfully stated our dissent from the 
judge's definition of the law, we cannot withhold our admiration of 
the patriotism which induced Judge Smalley to assume the respon- 
sibility of directing public opinion in the crisis at which the affairs 
of the country have arrived," spoke with bated breath and reverent 
esteem of his moral courage. The best characteristics of Andrew 
Jackson belonged to his early admirer and disciple. Conscientious- 
ness, impartiality, and firmness found ample scope in the new issues 
and trying ordeals of those perilous times, whether checking seces- 
sionist disintegration, or defending the rights of the people against 
the usurpations of officialism, he was equally wise and decidetl. 
Constitutional law was the only guide he would consent to acknowl- 
edge. 

At the October term of the United States Circuit Court, held at 
Rutland, Vt., in 1862, Judge Smalley rendered a decision in the 
case of Field, who had applied for a writ of habeas corpus on the 
27th of August previous. This writ had been granted by the judge, 
but obedience thereto was refused by United States Marshal Bald- 
win, wlio acted under instructions from the war department at 
Washington. Judge Smalley pointed out the illegality of the jiris- 
oncr's detention, and in terse and vigorous language described the 
order under which Baldwin had refused compliance: 



130 lUOr.KAPHV 01" THE BAR 

" It contains (said he), an implied threat against the members of 
the bar and other officers of the court, and ev-en against the court 
itself, if either do anything judicially or professionally to liberate a 
prisoner confined in jail upon what we have already seen was a 
despotic and illegal order of the war department. A more flagrant 
disregard of the constitution of the United States can hardly be 
conceived. I deeply regret that such an order should go abroad, 
not on my own account, but because such illegal assumptions of 
power go far to bring our institutions and government into disre- 
pute, both at home and abroad. I need not say to the people of 
Vermont, my native state, where my temper and conduct through 
life are well known, that threats will not influence me, nor that I 
shall do what I deem my duty unawed. A judge who will not 
faithfully and fearlessly perform every duty imposed upon him by 
the constitution and the laws, as much merits disgrace and punish- 
ment as does the soldier who deserts his colors on the battle-field." 

The upshot of the difficulty was the revocation of the objection- 
able order by the war department. Judge Smalley fined the mar- 
shal for contempt of court, and would not permit him to act as one 
of the officers of the court until he had purged himself of such 
contempt by obeying the rejected order. The marshal paid the 
fine and was restored to his privileges. Such judges as David 
Allen Smalley are invaluable to the commonwealth. Liberty can 
not sustain injury while they preside in tribunals of justice. This 
was only one out of many instances in which he sturdily resisted 
the arrogant approaches of authority toward usurpation and tyr- 
anny. 

Judge Smalley was a tireless worker. He not only attended the 
terms of the circuit and district courts in his own district, but fre- 
quently presided over the United States Circuit Courts in New 
York, Albany and Buffalo, and other places. A paralytic stroke 
impaired his physical powers in July, 1874. In consequence of this, 
congress passed an act in February, 1875, authorizing him to retire 
from labor, and continuing his salary. Partial restoration induced 
him to decline the proffered privilege. But in February, 1877, he 
tendered his resignation which was accepted, and was to take effect 
from the appointment of his successor. On the loth of March, 
1877, Judge Smalley died at his own residence in Burlington. His 
judicial career was one of remarkable power and brilliancy. Its 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. I3I 

zenith was coincident with the most momentous crisis of our 
national history. 

His love of country was profound, and his hatred of oppression 
most intense. Uniting a generous and pure heart with an uncom- 
monly powerful intellect and a fearlessly indomitable will, he was 
greatly beloved by all who could appreciate his virtues. In his own 
home he was ever an exceptionally fond husband and a tenderly, 
affectionate father. The Hon. E. W. Stoughton of the United 
States Circuit Court in New York City, voiced the feelings of the 
bench and of the bar in the statement, "In many respects his per- 
sonal qualities were of a character to endear him to those who 
became his friends. In his family he was very much beloved. His 
home was made by the very qualities I have mentioned a very 
charming and a very happy one." The Hon. E. J. Phelps on the 
same occasion bore strong testimony to his superlatively excellent 
judicial qualities. The Hon. L. E. Chittenden also, who had often 
been his antagonist in litigated cases, said that of Judge Smalley 
"one thing was especially characteristic — when he gave his word 
or understanding to another member of the bar, it was always as 
reliable as his bond." As one who never had any personal difficul- 
ties, " his influence upon the younger members of the bar is most 
excellent, and his example one which none of us will ever be too 
old to follow." Two of the gentlemen whose estimates are thus 
cited, had known him as legist and jurist for nearly forty years. 

David Allen Smalley was married on the 22d of May, 1833, to 
Laura, daughter of Col. Bradley Barlow, a large landed proprietor, 
and a gentleman of high standing and extensive influence in Fair- 
field, Vt. Five children were the issue of thi:s union. Of these 
Henry Adams Smalley, Bradley Barlow Smalley and Eugene Allen 
Smalley survive. 

LUKE P. POLAND. 

LUKli I'0TT1-:R POLAND of Waterville, Vt., was born at 
Westford, Vt., November i, A. D. 181 5. 
The ancestry of Judge Poland is of the best Anglo-American 
stock. His grandfather, Joseph Poland, went from Ipswich, Mass., 
to North Brookfield, Mass., in 1780. Five years latci' he married 
Rachael Hathaway. He was a carpenter and joinei' l)y trade, and 



132 BIOGKAPHV OF THE BAK. 

also worked at cabinet-making. He was the father of seven chil- 
dren, and died in 1S45 'if the age of ninety. Luther, his second 
son, was born in March, 1790, and in 1812 married Nancy Potter. 
Two years later he moved to Underbill, Vt., where he followed the 
paternal occupation, adding thereto the business of farming. In 
1 82 1 he moved from Underbill to Colt's Gore, now Waterville. 
After Waterville was organized as a town in 1826, he was elected 
its first representative to the state legislature. He also held many 
other offices of trust, and was for many years a worthy deacon in 
the Congregational church. He lived to the advanced age of ninety- 
one years, and died in June, 1880. 

Luke P. was the oldest son of Luther and Nancy (Potter) Poland. 
Like many of the eminent men of Vermont, his early advantages 
were very limited. He attended the district school until he was 
twelve years old, when he became clerk in a country store at Water- 
ville. He remained in this position two years. He learned to 
write a good hand, to keep accounts, to cast interest, and to trans- 
act ordinary business. The next three years he spent at home. He 
helped his father at his trade, on the farm, and in running a saw- 
mill driven by the neighboring brook. The last named fact explains 
the saying of the judge, " I was brought up and educated in a saw- 
mill." At the age of seventeen he attended for five months Jericho 
Academy, having exchanged boards from the saw-mill to obtain 
cloth for necessary clothing. This ended his school days. But his 
large, active brain had been receiving education from every source, 
the farm, the store, the shop, the saw-mill, the public schools, the 
academy, and the few books the neighborhood supplied, which were 
eagerly sought and their contents devoured. The proficiency thus 
acquired had given him confidence in his ability to open to himself 
a wider field of labor than the few paternal acres. With his father's 
approval, and with his effects, which consisted of one change of 
underclothing, he set out on foot, his own master, for the neighbor- 
ing village of Morrisville, where he was employed to teach the \il- 
lage school. He taught successfully two winters. 

He was as vigorous in body as in mind, excelled in athletic 
sports, and was an expert ball-player. At the close of his first 
school he entered upon the study of the law in the office of Judge 
Samuel A. Willard. The habits of industry and perseverance 
already acquired continued in ]nusuing his legal studies. His 





^-i>^i''^:^--e^ (J t7 <^r-tf^^ 




w 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 1 33 

means would not alU)w of continued study in the office. Hence 
to obtain means, Judge Willard hax-in;;- some business matters tliat 
needed constant attention at Greensboro, young Poland opened an 
office there for the practice of the law, and did quite a business at 
this place until he was admitted to the bar of Lamoille county at 
the December term, 1836, the first term after the organization of 
the county, at which time he was only twenty years of age. He 
had manifested so much faithfulness and ability in the pursuit of 
his legal studies and in all business entrusted to his hands, that 
Judge Willard took him as a partner, which continued three years. 
He soon gained a large practice, mostly in Lamoille, Orleans and 
Washington counties. With a family and no property, except what 
he earned, he became an intense worker. From necessity, as he 
has often said, he acquired a facility and rapidity in the dispatch of 
business, in the mastery of principles, cases and books, in the com- 
prehension and marshalling of facts that rendered him a marvel in 
the eyes of many of his compeers. The practical knowledge which 
he had gained in his varied experience greatly aided him, not only 
in understanding his cases himself, but in presenting them to the 
easy comprehension of the jury. He was skillful in preparing, suc- 
cessful in managing and presenting his cases to the jury. He was 
clear, forcible, and logical in the statement of the law in the higher 
courts. He could yield gracefully to inevitable defeat, but was too 
combative to surrender so long as there was a fortress uncarried. 
His practice became extensive and was continued for twelve years, 
when he was selected one of the judges of the Supreme Court. 
Although at the time a free soil democrat, he was elected over a 
whig competitor by a whig legislature, and afterwards received sev- 
enteen successive elections by a viva voce vote. In i860 he was 
elected Chief Justice, which office he held till he resigned his seat 
upon the bench in 1865, to accept the appointment to the United 
States Senate in place of Judge Collamer, deceased. At the age 
of thirty-three the discharge of his judicial duties brought him at 
once into close association with such men as Stephen Royce, Isaac 
F. Redfield, Milo L. Bennett, Daniel Kellogg and Hiland Hall, 
men who rank high in the judicial annals of the state. Nor did he 
suffer by the comparison. He was, emphatically, "the right man 
in the right place." Hy intuition, ap|)arently, but really by close 



134 P.IOGKAI'IIY OF THE BAK 

and vigorous application, he comprehended and mastered the 
broader principles of the law. 

His knowledge of the practical affairs of every day life, and his 
strong common sense, made him especially happy in applying them 
to such cases as came before him. He was quick to discern the 
controlling element in the facts of a case which made a particular 
principle of law applicable or inapplicable. He reasoned logically 
and stated his views clearly. His plain, pointed, and forcible 
charges were so helpful to the jury that they rarely disagreed. 
His presence was fine, his bearing courtly, his self-command great. 
He had withal enough of the natural school-master to command 
and maintain the best of order even in the heat of conflict. Sten- 
ographic reporters were then unknown. Each presiding judge took 
full minutes of testimony. A rapid writer, he rarely stopped a wit- 
ness, but kept all so closely at work that order became a prime 
necessity. He had no superior as a nisi priiis judge. 

Hon. James Barrett, for many years one of Judge Poland's asso- 
ciates at the bar and afterward upon the bench, thus writes con- 
cerning him : 

" In thirty years' conversancy with the bench and bar of Ver- 
mont, it has not been my fortune to know any other instance in 
which the presiding judge in his nisi prius circuit has been so uni- 
formly, and by the spontaneous acquiescence of the bar so emphat- 
ically 'the end of the law ' in all things appertaining to the business 
of these courts. As judge in the Supreme Court sitting in banc, 
his adaptedness to the place was equally manifest. His mastery of 
the principles of the law, his discriminating apprehension of the 
principles involved in the specific case in hand, his facility in devel- 
oping by logical processes and practical illustrations the proper 
applications and results of these principles, are very strikingly 
evinced in the judicial opinions drawn up by him, contained in the 
Vermont reports. His memory of cases, in which particular jjoints 
have been decided, is extraordinary, and this memory is accompa- 
nied by a very full and accurate apprehension of the very points 
and grounds, and reasons of the judgment. Some of the cases in 
which he drew the opinion of the court stand forth as leading cases, 
and his treatment of the subjects involved ranks with the best 
specimens of judicial disquisition." 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT, I 35 

Among the doctrines disciissecl and settled by leading cases above 
referred to are the power of eminent domain, or the right to take 
private property for pubHc uses, and the proper extent and limita- 
tion of that power ; the adoption of the common law of England 
by the United States ; the subject of easements ; the constitution- 
ality of retroactive statutes ; the acquirement of title by adverse 
possession ; to what extent promises to pay the debt of another arc 
governed by the statute of frauds. Judge Poland's opinion upon 
the extent of the constitutional power of the state to authorize its 
soldiers in camp to vote was regarded as a settlement of that vexed 
question, and was followed by several states. 

The sentiment of the bar was well embodied in the remark of a 
disfinguished jurist of Vermont upon the appointment of Judge 
Poland to the senate : " The state, so far as her interests depend 
upon the character of her courts and their administration of the 
law, has suffered irreparable injury by the transfer of Judge Poland 
from the chiefship of her judiciary to a seat in congress." 

Since his retirement from the bench, Judge Poland has kept up 
his connection with the judiciary by appearing as counsel in impor- 
tant cases before state and federal courts. Since the formation of 
the National Bar Association he has been chairman of its executive 
committee. Although in his early career he had given himself some- 
what actively to politics and was an influential member, first of the 
democratic party, and later of the free soil party, which in 1848 
selected him as their candidate for lieutenant-governor, on being 
.elected to the bench he withdrew from active participation in party 
politics, yet in his principles and acts, so far as they were called 
out in the exercise of his judicial functions, he was loyal to the 
principle of free soil and free men, and became identified with the 
republican party upon its formation, and has ever remained devoted 
to the principles in support of which that party was called into 
existence. 

In entering again into political life as the successor of Judge 
Collamer in the Senate of the United States, he displayed the same 
eminent ability^ sound judgment, and fearless advocacy of what 
he deemed right, which had marked his course and inspired the 
confidence of his associates in his earlier career. He at once began 
that career of usefulness which has marked his whole iiublic life, 
and made him eminent as one of the most indefatigable workers 



136 lUOGRAPHY OF THE I!AK 

among our public men. Being placed upon the judiciary commit- 
tee, the bankrupt bill which had been passed by the house was 
intrusted to his care. The judiciary committee were about equally 
divided upon the question of the expediency of the measure. The 
skillful management and the large personal influence of Judge 
Poland secured its passage. 

The measure for which Judge Poland is entitled to the greatest 
credit, as having been its originator, and as having during the ten 
years he represented the state at Washington, had the entire super- 
vision of its progress and completion, was that of the revision of 
the United States laws. Hon. Loren Blodgett in an address deliv- 
ered before the social science association at Philadelphia in 1875, 
spoke of this work as follows : 

"Early in the first session of the thirty-ninth congress, 1865-6, 
Hon. Luke P. Poland, the Senator for Vermont and a member of 
the judiciary committee of that body, introduced a bill for the 
revision and consolidation of the statutes of the United States, 
which was passed by the senate, April 9, 1866, by the house of 
representatives soon after and became a law June 27th, following, 
substantially without amendment in the form originally given it by 
Judge Poland. * * * This singularly clear and comprehensive 
plan was adhered to with almost literal faithfulness to the end — 
the term of labor required proving much greater than was expected 
— but in all other respects the foresight of Judge Poland was clearly 
shown and abundantly vindicated. * * * At this time, as sub- 
sequently shown, the real work of verification of the draft, as being 
truly the unrepealed statutes of the United States, general and 
permanent in their nature, began at the hands of responsible par- 
ties. The house committee on the revision of the laws, of which 
Judge Poland was chairman, took the report up with the full deter- 
mination to perfect and enact it into law. 

Having originated the whole work while a member of the senate 
in 1866, and followed it as the chief director of all subsequent pro- 
ceedings in both houses of congress for seven years. Judge Poland 
had an interest in consummating what all regarded as a great work 
which no other member of either branch could claim. * * * 

In all the later work the energy and determination of the distin- 
guished chairman, Judge Poland, were always conspicuous, and it 
must in justice be said that the final decision as to what was and 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VKKMONT. I 37 

what was not tlic law was his own, and not the commissioners or 
any one of them. His able associates uf the committee shared in 
responsibility, but none took the leading part. And the house to 
which he made the report at intervals, as enough of its verification 
should be completed for its action in all cases, sustained his report. 

The Senate, still more indisposed to review his work, enacted the 
revision in a body precisely as it came from the house, and the 
whole became the law June 23, 1874, without amendment, from 
the report of the committee on revisitm." 

With reference to the extreme difficulty of the work of revision, 
the same eminent authority adds: "The work of deciding was to 
a great extent judicial in its character, with the additional difficulty 
of being required to construe a statute without a case and without 
argument. * * * 

No test so severe, both as to familiarity with the ordinary con- 
struction of these statutes and as to legal discrimination in regard 
to the intrinsic incompatibility of acts which had successively over- 
lapped each other for nearly a century, without codification or spe- 
cific repeal, has at any time been applied to a body acting with the 
necessary haste of a committee in congress during an active session. 
Indeed, under no circumstances and at no time has a like effort 
been made." 

* * * In reviewing the work of this revision or codification, 
it is impossible not to accord it a rank quite distinct from, if nt)t 
higher, than any previous work of the kind known to history. * * 

To arrange, or rather re-arrange the statutes enacted over so 
long a period, according to the subjects treated and in all the detail 
which the diversity of chapters and sections in each act requires in 
their relation to different subjects of legislation, is alone a great 
task. Still more difficult is the adjustment of conflicting laws and 
the elimination of all that is repealed, because it is inconsistent or 
incompatible under the changed circumstances as well as the 
changed text of later legislation. What was actually done in the 
present case was sufficient to invoke the very highest degree of 
ability and discrimination in thus judging the law without a case 
and without argument. Laws are easily decisive and easily con- 
strued at the time of their enactment, but the strength that remains 
in them after the lapse of half a century is often reduced to a very 
small measure in consequence of a general inciimpatibilit)-c.\tremely 
difficult to define." 



I3S lilOGKAI'HV OF THE BAR 

liut when engaged in the very difficult and laborious task of 
superintending the revision and codification of the acts of congress 
covering a period of nearly a century, Judge Poland was also con- 
ducting investigations of the most voluminous and laborious char- 
acter which have never been undertaken by any legislative body. 
He was made chairman of the committee appointed to investigate 
the alleged outrages committed by the infamous Ku Klux Klan. 
The evidence presented before this committee filled, when printed, 
thirteen large volumes. The exposure made by the investigation 
and report of this committee practically broke up this organization, 
and was of inestimable value to the republican party at the South. 

Judge Poland was also chairman of the very important committee 
appointed to investigate the transactions of the Credit Mobilier 
Company. This investigation occupied several months, and the 
report of the committee was unanimous, and created much excite- 
ment in political and social circles at the time. It was sustained 
by the house, and, in effect, relegated several very prominent mem- 
bers of congress, implicated, to private life. 

During the era of reconstruction subsequent to the suppression 
of the rebellion. Judge Poland was no less conspicuous. As chair- 
man of a special committee appointed for that purpose, he con- 
ducted the investigation into the state of affairs in Arkansas. After 
a sharp fight in the house, the report of the committee, which the 
chairman supported by a very able speech, was sustained by a 
majority of seventy, a result which created no little surprise, as the 
fight had been a very vigorous one, and it was known that the 
result would be not a little unpalatable to the executive. 

Judge Poland also took a prominent part in the discussion of the 
vexed question of the distribution of the fund received under what 
is known as the Geneva Award. In a very able speech he advo- 
cated the right of insurance companies to the money received by 
the government for vessels and cargoes destroyed by the rebel 
cruisers, where the owners had received payment from the insurers. 

During the ten years which Judge Poland was a representative 
from Vermont in the senate and house, no member of either branch 
of congress was so intimately identified with so many important 
measures as the distinguished member from Vermont. The quality 
which commended him to such important positions was not more 
his eminent intellectual ability than that innate love of justice 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 1 39 

which he drank in with the free air of his native state, which had 
been fostered and strengthened by his long judicial service, and 
which enabled him to rise above mere partisan considerations and 
decide each question upon its own merits. It was this quality of 
fairness, displayed at the outset of his political career, that made 
him acceptable to both republicans and democrats as the chairman 
of committees for the investigation of questions the result of which 
might affect the interests of either of the two great contending 
parties. 

This quality of the man displayed itself at once upon his entering 
upon his legislative career. 

While in the senate a question arose as to the right of Mr. Stock- 
ton of New Jersey to a seat in that body. Mr. Stockton was a 
democrat, and the vote by which he was deprived of his seat was 
cast wholly by republican senators. Judge Poland was a member 
of the committee which heard the case, and both advocated and 
voted in favor of Mr. Stockton's right to his seat. 

During his first term in the house of representatives, Judge 
Poland was a member of the committee on elections. At this early 
period after the war there were a great many contested seats, and 
the still intense feeling for the Union and against the rebellion by 
the republican members made them more than usually partisan in 
their action. Judge Poland always endeavored to assume a judicial 
attitude in all such cases, which several times brought him into 
conflict with his own party. 

In 1876 the name of Judge Poland was suggested in many repub- 
lican papers as a suitable candidate for the vice-presidency. He 
was himself the chairman of the Vermont delegation to the Cin- 
cinnati convention which nominated Hayes and Wheeler, and he 
presented the name of Mr. Wheeler to the convention, and it has 
always been conceded that his efforts and influence in the conven- 
tion procured the nomination of Vice-President Wheeler. 

In 187S Judge Poland was a representative to the state legisla- 
ture. He was chairman of the judiciary committee of that body, 
and wielded a potent influence in all the legislative measures 
brought before the house. 

In the reapportionment of congressional districts based upon the 
census of 1880, Vermont lost one of her representatives. 

In 1882 Judge Pi^land received the nomination for congress upon 



140 BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR. 

the first ballot in the republican convention of the new second dis- 
trict. 

In the vigor of mature manhood, in the full and ready possession 
of vast, varied, political and cognate knowledge, endowed with a 
vigorous intellect of tried and disciplined judicial abilities and 
broad statesmanship, he at once assumed the position of a leading 
member of congress. Though a republican in a democratic house, 
he secured the passage of several important acts for the relief of 
the business of the United States Supreme Court. He, together 
with his associates, has made Vermont foremost among the states 
of the Union in the influence of her delegation at Washington. In 
1850 Judge Poland moved to St. Johnsbury. He was influential in 
securing the removal of the county buildings to that place, and was 
chairman of the committee for their erection. From its organiza- 
tion for twenty-two years he was president of the First National 
Bank of St. Johnsbury. In 1885 he purchased the old homestead 
of Dr. Page, his father-in-law, at Waterville, with the intention of 
making it his home. There he now resides. 

In 1858 the University of Vermont showed its appreciation of 
Judge Poland by conferring upon him the honorary degree of Mas- 
ter of Arts, and in 1861 of Doctor of Laws. In 1878 he became 
trustee of the same university. In 1882 he founded the Westford 
scholarship in this institution, in honor of his native town. 

With those who know him in private life Judge Poland is very 
popular, his conversation sparkling with wit and genial humor. He 
was married on the 12th of January, 1838, to Martha Smith, daugh- 
ter of Dr. William Page of Waterville. By this marriage he had 
three children. Of these Martin I., the eldest, was educated at 
West Point Military Academy, and afterwards served as captain of 
the Ordinance Corps. He died at Fort Yuma, in August, 1878. 
Mary died in August, 1865, and Isabel is now the wife of A. E. 
Rankin, of St. Johnsbury. Mrs. Poland died in April, 1853, In 
1854 Judge Poland married Adelia H. Page, sister of his deceased 
wife, who is now living. 



Note. — This article is made up to some extent from the Biographical Ency- 
clopedia of Vermont. 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. I4I 

ALBERT MANSON. 

ALBERT MANSON came to Derby in 1S37 from " Manson- 
ville" in the town of Potton, P. O., a village, as we are 
informed, named after the family of the subject of our sketch. The 
first winter after coming to Derby, Mr. Manson taught the school 
at Derby. He then opened an office and engaged in the practice 
of the law. Mr. Manson only remained until 1839, when he 
returned to Mansonville. 

HENRY FRANCIS PRENTISS. 

HENRY FRANCIS PRENTISS, the si.xth son of Samuel 
and Lucretia Houghton Prentiss, was born at Montpelier, 
Vt., November, 18 14. He received an academical education at the 
academy in Montpelier, and commenced the study of the law with 
his father at Montpelier. Subsequently to this he entered the 
office of Hon. Isaac V. Redfield, then of Derby, Orleans county, 
Vt. He was admitted to the bar of that county at its June term, 
A. D. 1837, and commenced practice in Derby, and he remained 
there and at Irasburgh in active practice until the autumn of 1855, 
when he removed to the city of Milwaukee. While at Derby he 
was a partner of Stoddard B. Colby. During this time he married 
Ruth, daughter of Dr. Colby of Derby. In 1847 he was elected 
state's attorney for the county of Orleans, and re-elected in 1848. 
In i860 he was appointed register in bankruptcy for the district in 
which Milwaukee is situated, and from that time practically with- 
drew from the practice of the law. He was a well read and able 
lawyer, with mental characteristics that pre-eminently fitted him 
for that profession. In person Mr. Prentiss was about five feet 
nine inches high, and was a man of warm and generous impulses 
and genial disposition. He died December 2, 1872. 



TIMOTHY PARKER REDFIELD. 

By Hon. L. H. Thomi'SON. 

THE Orleans county bar is justly proud of its history. It has 
ever maintained a high standing for ability, learning and 
integrity. Men eminent as lawyers and judges ; men of wide 
experience in public affairs have adorned its ranks. If, without a 
19 



14- BIOGRAPHY OF THE liAK 

contest like that waged over the birthplace of Homer, this bar is 
permitted to claim Judge Poland as one of its members, from the 
fact that he opened an office in Greensboro, Vt., and practiced as 
an attorney there before he was admitted to any bar, and continued 
to practice in this county until he was elevated to the bench, it can 
claim among its members who have become more or less distin- 
guished in public life, a United States Senator, three Representa- 
tives to Congress, and a Lieutenant-Governor, besides State Senators 
and Representatives too numerous to name. Five judges — Davis, 
Poland, the two Redfields, and the talented and lamented Steele 
have represented it on the bench of the Supreme Court of this 
state, and proved themselves among the Nestors of that court. 

William Howe, an early member of this bar, was presiding judge 
of the Orleans county court. 

From its ranks have gone forth many able men who have settled 
in other states, and have there won distinction in their profession. 
Three such became judges in the states of their adoption. One of 
its members, the late Judge Isaac F. Redfield, whose patient indus- 
try was unsurpassed, won great honor and distinction as a legal 
writer. It has been said that his legal treatises are more widely 
known and cited in this country and in England than the works of 
any other American law writer except Judge Story. 

Worthy to rank among the ablest and the best of the brilliant 
lawyers and judges above mentioned is the subject of this sketch. 

Timothy Parker Redfield was born at Coventry, Orleans county, 
Vt, November 3, A. D. 18 12. He was one of twelve children, six 
sons and si.x daughters, born unto his parents. Dr. Peleg Redfield 
and Hannah (Parker) Redfield. The father, Dr. Peleg Redfield, 
was of English descent, and a grandson of the revolutionary sol- 
dier, Capt, Peleg Redfield. He was born at Killingworth, Conn. 
He settled in Coventry, Vt., in June, 1805, on a farm still owned 
by his descendants. He was the first settled physician in Coventry 
and the fourth in Orleans county. His practice was extensive and 
arduous. Such was the condition of the country and lack of roads 
that he had to visit his patients on horseback, and not unfrequently 
on foot through the forests. Although, perhaps, not what can be 
justly called a brilliant man, he was a man of vigorous mind, sound 
judgment, and good practical common sense. He stood well in his 
profession, and was honored and respected 1)\- ;ill who knew him. 



^^^.'^f'^ 



^ 



,^^^ 





.^^/f^ 




ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. I43 

Hannah (Parker) Redfield, the mother of Timothy P., was a 
daughter of Isaac and Bridget (Fletcher) Parker. She was born in 
Milford, Mass., November 17, 1785, married at Weathersfield, Vt., 
in March, 1803, and died at a ripe old age, a few years since, at 
Coventry, Vt. She was a remarkable woman. She faithfully per- 
formed her maternal duties in rearing and training her large family. 
She also proved herself a worthy helpmeet to her husband in estab- 
lishing their new home on the hillside of Coventry, and was ever 
its presiding genius, to whom the husband and children always 
turned for cheer and inspiration. Possessed of strong character 
and remarkable intellectual ability, throughout her long life she 
was a great reader of the best literature of her time. In the cur- 
rent topics and events of the day, she always took a keen interest. 
Her conversational powers were fine and charming. Separated, to 
a great e.xtent by her lot in life, from the refinements and social 
intercourse of educated and refined society, yet such were her 
attainment?, her sterling worth and native sense, that she would 
have adorned the best society and won admiration for her charming 
qualities and inherent worth. From her both Timothy P. and 
Isaac F. inherited the characteristics and mental qualities which, 
with their industry, brought them well-deserved eminence. 

The early life of the family was attended with many of the pri- 
vations and discomforts which inevitably go with pioneer life. The 
country was new but full of hope. The elder brother, Isaac F., 
determined to go to college, and after attending a preparatory 
school eight months, he entered the freshman class of Dartmouth 
College, then eight months advanced in their course. No doubt 
moved by his brother's example, Timothy P. was possessed with a 
desire to obtain a liberal education. He has aptly described it as 
"a desire without logical reasoning, an insatiable longing, not 
from suggestion, but from intuition, to obtain a college education." 
He fitted himself to enter college as well as his facilities would per- 
mit. Then the great question presented itself as to how the 
expenses of the four years college course were to be paid. He was 
without means ; he could reasonably expect but little assistance 
from his father, but full of hope and self-reliance, he entered Dart- 
mouth College. By teaching three months each winter he added 
something to his scanty finances, and now and then a kind friend 
admiring his courage, helped him to much needed means, so that in 



144 niOGKAPHY OF THE l!AK 

1836 he completed his college course and graduated with honor. 
During his college course he was a thorough student, ranking 
among the first in his class. 

Immediately after leaving college he entered the office of his 
brother, Isaac F., as a law student. While pursuing his legal stud- 
ies he taught for a time at Brownington Academy, taking the place 
of the Rev. Alexander L. Twilight, an eminent teacher, who for 
twenty-two years was at the head of that academy. In 1838 he 
was admitted to the bar, and began the practice of his profession 
at Irasburgh, Vt. February 6, 1S40, he married Helen W. Grannis 
of Stanstead, P. 0. Four children, issue of this marriage, were 
born, of whom one only, a daughter, survives. 

In 1848 he was senator from Orleans county. 

He resided at Irasburgh from the time of his admission to the 
bar until 1848, when he removed to Montpelier, Vt., and has since 
resided there. 

He was engaged continuously in the practice of hi'S profession 
from his admission to the bar until he was elected a judge of the 
Supreme Court of Vermont in 1870. He was successively re-elected 
judge until the fall of 1884, when he declined a re-election. 

F"rom the outset of his professional career he commanded the 
respect and confidence of the people of his native county, and soon 
became one of its leading lawyers. From 1856 to 1870 he prac- 
ticed constantly in the courts of Orleans, Caledonia and Washing- 
ton counties, being engaged in many of the most important trials. 
His associates and antagonists at the bar were such men as Judge 
Poland, Stoddard B. Colby, Lucius B. Peck, Thomas Bartlett, and 
others of like eminent ability in their profession, who always found 
him an efficient helper when their associate, and a "foeman worthy 
of their steel " when their opponent. 

As a lawyer Judge Redfield ranks as one of the ablest, and the 
equal of any in the state. While a student and in the early years 
of his practice, he became well grounded in the elementary princi- 
ples of equity and the common law, and thus his mind was illumined 
by what Lord Coke aptly styles "The gladsome light of jurispru- 
dence." Possessing a fine legal mind, he was thus able in after 
years, almost intuitively, to form correct conclusions as to the law 
governing the case under consideration. With Lord Coke, he 
believed that " reason is tlie life of the law ; nay, the common law 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 145 

itself is notliin.L;' else but reason," and hence he brought his judg- 
ment, his sound common sense, and his instinctive sense of justice, 
as well as his legal learning from the books, into the consideration 
of his cases. He was never so ardent and untiring a student as his 
brother Isaac F., yet he read widely and well, and in the trial of 
questions of fact or of law was always found thoroughly furnished 
and equipped. 

Possessed of an excellent memory, sound judgment, fine reason- 
ing powers, a judicial temperament, and a most subtle intellect, he 
was safe counsel and a most dangerous adversary. A man once his 
client usually was always his client. When he left the bar for the 
bench but few lawyers, if any, in the state, had a larger clientage 
than he. 

As a practitioner at the bar he was self-possessed, cautious, skill- 
ful, clear-headed, quick to discern the weak points in his adversary's 
case and to grasp the strong ones in his own, thus being an oppo- 
nent who required constant attention. In the cross-examination of 
witnesses he was skillful. He early learned the "art of silent 
cross-examination." Never loud nor lengthy, he gave the hostile 
witness no chance to reiterate damaging testimony, but after quietly 
eliciting something, if possible, to break the force of the testimony, 
such witness was quietly and blandly dismissed. Baron Alderson 
could never have said of him as he is reported to have said to an 
advocate of great noise and mistaken energy, " Mr. B., you seem to 
think the art of cross-examination is to examine crossly." 

While at the bar, as an advocate he was not surpassed by any 
lawyer in the state. He impressed a jury with his dignified bear- 
ing, his apparent fairness and candor. His face was "like a bene- 
diction " to an ordinary jury. He knew them and their fathers 
before them, and his jury arguments abounded in anecdotes in 
which they or their ancestors had taken a creditable part. Thus 
he quietly insinuated himself into their good graces until they were 
ready to believe that so genial and pleasing a lawyer must 
be on the right side. He had a happy faculty of marshalling 
the facts in his favor, and sujjporting them by cogent reasoning. 
When arguing a case his manner was usually easy and quiet, and 
his tone conversational, but when thoroughly aroused he was earn- 
est in manner, spoke rapidly, and in ringing, incisive tones. His 
skill and i)ower as an advocate unconsciously clung to him after he 



146 ISIOCKAPHV OF THE liAR 

became a judge, and at times manifested itself in his charges to the 
jury or in rendering a judgment. At times he would so present one 
side of a debatable case as to almost make it seem there was only 
the side he had thus presented ; then he would make what has been 
wittily described as an "eloquent pause," after which he would 
begin with an ominous "but " to marshal the facts upon the other 
side, and to combine them in so striking and suggestive a manner 
as apparently to call for a judgment or verdict directly opposite from 
that suggested by his opening remarks. Of unquestionable integ- 
rity through all his life, such was the confidence of the people of 
Orleans and Washington counties in his honesty and sound judg- 
ment that when he commenced holding courts in these counties, 
the jury in many cases were inclined to render verdicts in accord- 
ance with what they deemed to be his views as to a just disposal 
of the case. 

Quite a compliment to his magnetic and persuasive influence 
over a jury in presenting a cause was given by J. A. Wing, P2sq., 
of Montpelier. The Washington county bar, after Judge Redfield's 
retirement from the bench, procured a fine portrait of him, and 
placed it in the court-house where it overlooked the jury box. Mr. 
Wing was solicited to give something towards the expense of pro- 
curing the picture, after it was put up, and replied that he " would 
cheerfully do so if they would turn the face of the picture to the 
wall whenever the court was charging the jury." 

His reputation as a lawyer, so far as the bar is concerned, will 
probably rest largely upon his judicial labors, but by the common 
people he will be kept in remembrance by his fame as a consum- 
mate advocate, whose skill and success tradition will embellish and 
magnify. 

In the consideration of legal qu.stions, while on the bench, he 
displayed keen jDerception, sound judgment, and a fine judicial 
poise of mind. His opinions are able, and will prove a lasting 
monument to his ability and learning as a lawyer and a judge. 
Comparisons are odious, but it is no disparagement to his learned 
associates to say that while he was judge, no abler man sat upon 
the bench of the Supreme Court of this state. 

Lord Lyndhurst, while Chancellor of England, in describing the 
principle upon which he selected a judge, said, " I look out for a 
gattleviiiii, and if he knows a little law so much the better." Judge 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. I47 

Redfield never forgot that one of the requisite quahfications of a 
judge was good manners. 

On the bench he was always a gentleman, and treated the bar 
with a courtesy which was fully reciprocated. On the bench he 
never lost his temper or self-control. A difference of ojiinion on a 
question of law or fact, between himself and counsel, aroused all 
his latent intellectual powers, but never disturbed his manners, and 
the defeated counsel felt that the skillful manner in which he had 
been cast was worthy to be classed among the "fine arts," that he 
had been decapitated, not by a butcher's cleaver, but by a Damas- 
cus blade wielded by a master's hand. 

Judge Redfield is a fine classical scholar. He has also read 
widely in the best English literature, the beauties and strength of 
which he keenly appreciates. His tastes are scholarly, and what 
he has read he has made his own. English history, especially con- 
stitutional history and the history of the common law, has always 
had a charm for him, and by its study he has thoroughly mastered the 
principles that underlie our own political development, and which 
are really the basis of our civil polity. 

In social life he is a charming companion. Simple in manner 
and frank in speech, he abounds in anecdotes and reminiscences of 
the early lights of the bar with whom he was associated or 
acquainted, as well as of many men prominent in other walks of 
life. 

He has a vein of quaint wit and humor, which causes him 
instinctively to seize upon and retain the droll sayings and inter- 
esting stories which so aptly and forcibly illustrate the public and 
private life and real character of so many men. This trait of mind 
is seen in the quaint expressions and anecdotes which sometimes 
are found in his published opinions, as for instance his description 
of a horse as having the " historic vice of running away without 
any occasion," in Cheney vs. Ryegate, 55 Vt., and his humorous 
description in Wilder I's. Oilman, 55 Vt., as to what constitutes 
"good faith," according to the luminous idea of an ordinary justice 
of the peace. 

In politics Judge Redfield has always been a democrat. He had' 
the honor of being elected to the bench by a republican legislature. 
It is needless to say that a man of position and intelligence who 
has been a democrat in Vermont for the past twenty-five years, has 



I4S BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR. 

been so from honest convictions and principle. It is probably well 
for his standing as a lawyer that he has belonged to the minority 
in politics, as otherwise, without doubt, he would have been drawn 
into political life. In 1S84 he was the democratic candidate for 
United States Senator against the Hon. Justin S. Morrill, the 
republican candidate. 

Judge Rcdfield had long entertained a desire to visit England 
and the continent of Europe. On account of poor health he took 
this trip in the summer of 1883. He visited England and France, 
and spent the following winter in Italy. From the latter country 
he wrote a series of interesting letters, which were published in 
the Argus and Patriot. 

For many years Judge Redfield has been a worthy communicant 
of the Episcopal church. 

He has led an exemplary life, free from the habits and vices 
which so often tarnish the otherwise fair fame of public men. 

In the quiet of his beautiful home he now enjoys, in "an old 
age, serene and bright," the well-earned leisure of a well-spent life. 
May the years bring him honor and peace, and when at last he 
joins the unseen band of the friends and companions of his youth, 
and of his early and later manhood, who now " rest from their 
labors," may it truly be said of him : 

" How well he fell asleep ! 

Like some proud river widening 

Towards the sea. 

Calmly and grandly, silently and deep. 

Life joined eternity." 



STODDARD BENHAM COLBY. 

By Hon. T. 1'. Redfiki.ii. 

STODDARD BENHAM COLBY was the second son of Hon. 
Nehemiah Colby, and born in Derby, January, 1816. He was 
fitted for college in the law office of the late Isaac F. Redfield, 
which stood near his father's store in Derby Center. Mr. Colby 
was an apt and ready scholar, and Judge Redfield then fresh from 
college, gave him a thorough training, especially in the Greek and 
Latin languages, in which his young pupil had special aptitude. He 
entered Dartmouth College in the fall of 1833, and graduated with 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. I49 

high honor in 1836. He .studied law in the office of the late Sena- 
tor Upham in Montpelier, and was admitted to the bar of Orleans 
county at the December term, 1838, and at once commenced prac- 
tice at Derby, where he remained until 1846, representing the town 
of Derby in the legislature in 1841. In 1846 he removed to 
Montpelier and formed a copartnership with the late Lucius 
B. Peck, under the firm name of Peck & Colby, and so 
continued until 1863, when Mr. Colby was made register of the 
treasury and removed to Washington. He held that office until 
his death. Mr. Colby was a ripe scholar, a facile and ready 
speaker, and from the first his manner at the bar was elegant, 
and his language choice and beautiful. He had a voice of 
peculiar compass and melody. He at once took high rank as a 
brilliant and accomplished advocate. He possessed a lively and 
vigorous imagination, and invested ideas and incidents with such 
charming beauty that a court or jury became insensibly and irre- 
sistibly enlisted and absorbed in the investiture with which he 
clothed a case. This was no studied ornamentation, but the natu- 
ral outpouring from that rich treasury which was entirely his own, 
and inexhaustibly full. He never essayed the emotional, and never 
addressed the passions of men, but he charmed them with the 
beautiful, and. disgusted them with what was degrading and hateful, 
thereby enlisting their affection for the one, and arousing their 
contempt for the other, and by that he made sure their judgment. 
As a brilliant advocate he had no peer among us, and the profession 
suffered an irreparable loss when he was transferred to the service 
of the government. His great powers had a natural adaptation to 
his chosen profession, and his honor and his fame must rest there. 
It is a 'matter of regret, and we think on his part a mistake, that 
he ever left the profession. Mr. Colby in every emotion and in 
every fibre, was intellectual and spiritual. He had an utter dislike 
and contempt for all that was gross, sensual and degraded. His 
fidelity to the sacred trusts of social and domestic life was not a 
mere matter of policy, but of fixed duty. This made the ties of 
domestic life strong. 

He married in his youth Miss Harriet C. Proctor, the eldest 
daughter of the Hon. Jabez Proctor of Proctorsville, Vt., and sister 
of Gov. Proctor, the present royal manager and large owner of the 
great marble industries of this state. By this marriage he had four 



150 BIOGRAPHY OF THE HAK 

children ; two died young. The eldest daughter, Laura, is the wife 
of Col. A. B. Gary of the United States army. Jabez Proctor Colby 
is still living. Mrs. Colby was the most lovely of women, and lost 
her life in the ill-fated steamer, Henry Clay, which was burned on 
the Hudson on its passage from Albany to New York. This sad 
calamity and bereavement overwhelmed Mr. Colby with great grief. 
On this occasion the press reproduced and published the verses 
that Mr. Colby had written upon the death of his class-mate, David 
Scott Sloan, who perished in like manner by the burning of the 
" Erie " on Lake Erie a few years before. For Mr. Colby was both 
an orator and a poet, and to show his taste and versatility it is here 
inserted. 

HUKNING OF THE ERIE. 

She sails to-night, that gallant bark, 

How proudly greets the air ; 
Oh, bear thee well, bold, daring ark. 

Rich gems are periled there. 

High hopes, fond prayers surround thy prow; 

Heed well, the parting tear. 
Glad homes, gay hearts are .saddened now. 

How full of truth is fear. 

What cherished ones are there enrolled ; 

Love's perfect, greenest spring, 
Whose tendrils twined through half the worki. 

Around that frail boat cling. 

Scarce faded from the anxious sight 

Echo the last " God speed," returns 
A flash, a flame gleams on the night. 

Oh. Heaven! The Erie burns'. 

Ah! virtue, talent, beauty, worth. 

Must ye all perish there ? 
Look now aloft, trust not in earth. 

Its hopes but mock your care. 

They're lost, they're gone, great God defend 

The bleeding, bursting heart. 
Thine only is the power to .send 

The grace that bids despair depart. 

We leave the wreck, but shall we trace 

The march of this dread blow ? 
Mark crnshed affection's pallid face 

Where tears unbidden flow ? 



OKI.EANS COUNTY, VERMONT. ISI 

The story flies, clay after day, 

The Erie's ruthless fate ; 
Tie after tie is burst away. 

And homes and hearts are ilesolate. 

Rut enter not griefs solitude, 

It seeks not sympathy ; 
There is no heart so hard, so rude. 

Can paint its agony. 

Must /, too, for that offering lend 

^1 treasured sacrifice .' 
My generous, virtuous, manly friend 

With Erie's dead now lies. 

Friend of my youth ; 1 see thee now 

On that stern funeral pile. 
Calm resignation on thy brow 

Betokening Heaven's smile 

Ah, Sloan! we thought not thus to part. 

When from our college home 
We rushed on Fortune's busy mart. 

Eager for Fortune's doom. 

Classmates ? our brother's course is run ; 

That spirit, noble, rare ; 
The battle fought, the victory won. 

Has found a Life-boat there. 

After several years Mr. Colby married Miss Ellen Hunt, a lady 
of much accomplishment and decided scholarshij), and Ijy this mar- 
ria<^e had two children — Ellen, now the wife of Mr. Stokes of New 
York City, a very estimable and beautiful lady, and Frank, a schol- 
arly lad of decided promise, now about to enter college. He was 
ever happy in his domestic relations, and charming in social life. 

His transfer to public service in Washington was never quite 
congenial to his tastes, but it enabled him to be acquainted with 
public men, and many that figured conspicuously in the great con- 
flict then about to begin. This acquaintance was not only gratify- 
ing to him, but stored his mind with knowledge of men, and of 
incidents by which he hoped to reap advantage in the long life that 
was apparently before him, so far as is in the reach of human ken. 
He came to New Hampshire at the home of his kinsman, Mr. 
Woodard, early in August, 1867, for a few weeks' sojourn and rest, 

when 

"The summons came to join 

The innumerable caravan that moves 

To that mysterious realm." 



152 BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR 

He died at Haverhill, N. H., on the 21st of October, I1S67, and 
was buried in that ancient cemetery on the slope of the liill over- 
looking the valley of the Connecticut, the scene of his college life 
and professional labors. Mr. Colby was for many years a consist- 
ent member of the Protestant Episcopal church, and his personal 
character was without "spot or wrinkle," and he died looking for 
the resurrection of the dead ''and the life of the world to come." 

•' Green be the turf above thee. 
Thou friend of my better days." 



NORMAN BOARDMAN. 

NORMAN BOARDMAN, the son of Osias and Lydia Whit- 
ney Boardman, was born at Morristown, Vt., April 30, 181 3. 
His parents emigrated, the former from Connecticut and the latter 
from Massachusetts as early as the commencement of this century, 
settled and lived on the same farm until they died in 1843. I" his 
youth Norman was employed in working on his father's farm, and 
attending the district school. This continued until he was seven- 
teen, when he engaged in teaching during the winters, but still 
made the farm the base of his operations until he was twenty, 
when he attended the academy at Johnson, and there graduated, 
the principal then being Perry Haskell. He did not enter upon 
the study of the law very early in life, but engaged in school- 
teaching and farming until his twenty-fifth year, when he visited 
the West as far as Missouri, where he taught school. He soon 
returned to Vermont and entered upon the study of the law with 
Harlow P. Smith at Hydepark, and at the end of one year entered 
the office of John Smith at St. Albans, the father of Hon. John 
Gregory Smith, ex-governor of Vermont. He remained there but 
a short time, but continued his law studies with Smalley & Adams, 
where he could be self-sustaining. While in their office he also 
attended the law lectures of Judge Turner. He was admitted to 
the Franklin county bar at its September term, 1839. On the first 
day of November, 1839, he opened an office at North Troy, Vt., 
but only remained there until spring. Finding that South Troy 
was more central for the business of the Missisquoi valley he 
removed to that place, and continued in the active practice of the 




yt^o-t'i^i-c^:^-'-^^ ^ ty O'u.t.^Cu^'ii.c^ 



OKLKANS COUNTY, VEKiMONT. 153 

law until June i, 1853, when he removed West. The only attorney 
in the Missisquoi valley when Mr. Boardman settled there was 
Samuel Sumner at South Troy, a middle-aged man, who had been 
there several years and had a very good business, bringing nearly 
all the suits in that vicinity. By close application and hard work 
Mr. Boardman soon gained his share of the business, not only in 
the valley but the whole county, and after a short time he was on 
one side or the other of every case of any note coming from that 
section, and this continued as long as he resided there. In 1847 
Mr. Boardman was appointed deputy collector of customs, and in 
1850, under the amended constitution allowing the state's attorney 
of the county to be elected by the people, was elected to that office 
as a democrat by four majority, although the whig party had a 
majority in the county of more than one hundred and fifty, John 
L. Edwards of Derby Line being the whig candidate against him, 
and the next year Mr. Boardman only failed of a re-election by six- 
teen votes, William H. Dickerman, one of the most popular attor- 
neys in the county, being the successful candidate. In 1864, on 
the passage of the Nebraska bill, Mr. Boardman left the ranks of 
the democracy, and has voted with the republican party since. 
When Mr. Boardman left the county in 1853 he intended to settle 
in Iowa that same year, but leaving his family at Potsdam, N. Y., 
he proceeded to Iowa and invested to some extent in lands, return- 
ing to New York in the fall with his health somewhat impaired. 
Having a good offer for business he concluded to abandon his idea 
of the West, and contracted a law partnership with Judge William 
A. Wallace of Potsdam. The population of Iowa rapidly increased, 
and the value of its lands were greatly enhanced. Hence in Sep- 
tember, 1855, Mr. Boardman was led to remove to Lyons, near his 
former purchases, where he has since reyided, giving his whole 
attention to the real estate business, in which he has been very 
successful, accumulating a goodly competency. Mr. Boardman has 
always taken a leading part in the affairs of his city and county, 
and has been honored with places of responsibility and trust. 

He was elected to the state senate in 1861, and in May, 1869, 
was appointed United States revenue collector for the second dis- 
trict of Iowa, positions which he filled with credit to himself and 
the country. 



154 IlIOnKAPHV OF THE BAR 

JOHN HOLMES PRENTISS. 

JOHN HOLMES PRENTISS, the fourth son of Samuel B. 
and Lucretia (Houghton) Prentiss, was born at Montpelier, Vt., 
P'ebruary lo, 1811. Of the family, the Vermont Historical Gazet- 
teer says : " His father, Hon. Samuel Prentiss, was born at Ston- 
ington, Conn., March 31, 1782. His family, of a pure English and 
Puritan stock, are traceable as far back as 1318 through ofificial 
records, which show the reputable positions occupied by branches 
of the family till they came to New England, where the lineage at 
once took stock among the best in the colonies. In direct descent 
he was the sixth from his first American and English born ances- 
tor, Capt. Thomas Prentiss. Born in PIngland about 1620, he 
became a resident of Newton, Mass., in 1652, was a noted cavalry 
officer in the King Philip war, and died in 17 10, leaving Thomas 
Prentiss, Jr., father of Samuel Prentiss 1st, father of Samuel 2d, 
who was a colonel in the revolutionary army and father of Samuel 
3d, a physician and surgeon in the army and the father of Judge 
Samuel of Montpelier, the father of our subject. The whole stock 
of the Prentiss family was good, but this branch was particularly 
so, both physically and intellectually. Col. Prentiss of revolution- 
ary memory, si.\ feet high, weighing over two hundred pounds, 
without corpulency, was one of the best built, most muscular men 
of the times ; and the different members of the family descending 
from him, for the last two or three generations, of which those now 
livinsr have been coa;nizant, will be remembered to have been, with 
a rare uniformity, well-formed, shapely and good-looking, possessing 
an unusual intellectual capacity and power." Samuel B., the father 
of our subject, having been educated for a lawyer, went to Mont- 
pelier, Vt., early in 1803, and opened an office, which was ever 
after to be his home, and the central point of the field of the splen- 
did professional success which he was destined to achieve. John 
H. attended the public schools and academy of Montpelier. He 
went while yet quite a young man to Boston to engage in mercan- 
tile pursuits, where he remained a few years, but his inclinations 
being more towards a professional life he returned to Vermont, and 
entered upon the study of the law in his father's office at Mont- 
pelier, and was admitted to the bar of Washington county at the 
November term, A. L). 1S35, and to the Supreme Court at the March 
term, i83cS. 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 155 

When living in Boston he gave much attention to the study of 
political economy, and he received a diploma from the society for 
the diffusion of useful knowledge for the best essay upon the tariff, 
which was delivered to him by Daniel Webster, the president of 
the society, in a public meeting. 

After his admission to the bar he remained in his father's ofifice 
until about 1839, when he went to Irasburgh, where he had a 
brother Charles W. Prentiss in the practice of the law. The follow- 
ing is from the pen of Judge Timothy P. -Redfield, who was in 
practice at that time at Irasburgh, and who knew Mr. Prentiss inti- 
mately : " When John H. Prentiss first came to Irasburgh he was 
engaged in the foundry business. When the foundry business was 
closed up, John H. opened an ofifice at Irasburgh for the practice of 
law, and he remained in active practice there until he removed to 
Minnesota. He was a good advocate, very tenacious and persistent. 
He was a good scholar and well learned in his profession, and con- 
spicuously learned in the Bible and in Shakespeare. In these te.xt 
bo(.)ks he was never at sea, though he might trip in Blackstone or 
Chitty. He is remembered to have not only made telling points 
against his adversary, but to have entertained and instructed the 
Supreme Court by his easy and familiar reference to the Bible and 
to Shakespeare by way of illustration. He had ready wit, and to 
gratify the young men of the bar he was often solicited to repeat 
the earnest speech of the old soldier democrat out in Arkansas, 
who had fought under Jackson at New Orleans, in convention con- 
vened to alter the constitution. He hated federalism, and fancied 
the hated party had inspired the project to alter the constitution. 
A fragment of that speech is recalled : ' When I was fighting the 
battles of our country under the patriot Jackson in mud, blood, and 
dirt to the waist, where then was Daniel Webster .' Down there in 
Boston town writing his d — d old federal dictionary. Now alter the 
constitution, will you, d — n you .' ' 

Mr. Prentiss will be kindly remembered for his garnered knowl- 
edge and rich attainments." Failing health compelled him in the 
winter of 1869 to relinquish his practice, and in the hope of restored 
health he removed to Minnesota, where he passed the remaining 
years of his life quietly. His death took place at Winona, Sep- 
tember 28, 1876. 



156 BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR. 

WILLIAM H. MARTIN. 

By Gf,ok(;k P. Martin. 

WILLIAM H. MARTIN was born in Underhill, Vt, May 6, 
18 1 3. His education was obtained wholly at the district 
school and the academy in Johnson, where he was in attendance a 
short time. He pursued his legal studies with a Mr. Pike of John- 
son, supporting himself meanwhile by teaching district and singing 
schools, and began the practice of law in Glover in the autumn of 
1 841, immediately after his marriage to Miss Salome Allen of John- 
son. After two years, during which time he built up a good busi- 
ness and was once elected town representative, a succession of 
severe pulmonary hemorrhages led him to try a change of climate, 
and he went to Alabama, where he spent six years in teaching. 
Although his health was not fully recovered, he then returned to 
his native town, and traveled in Vermont and Northern New York 
selling patent medicines. He represented Underhill for one term 
in the legislature, and spent the last two years of his life on a farm 
in Eden, where he died of consumption from whose ravages he 
had so long suffered, August 15, 1856. He left a wife and si.x 
children. The widow and two children, the third son, Oliver, and 
the only daughter, Clara Salome, have since followed him into rest. 
Of the four who still survive, William A. resides in Houlton, Maine, 
George P. in Plattsburgh, N. Y., Elon O. in Hinesburgh, Vt., and 
Frank E. (whose name was changed to Woodruff by legislative act), 
in Andover, Mass. 



JOSIAH A. FLETCHER. 

THE subject of this sketch was born in Wheelock, Vt., in 1814. 
He prepared himself for college at the common schools and 
Lyndon Academy. He took a full course at the University of 
Vermont. He pursued the study of the law in the office of Jessie 
Cooper of Irasburgh, and was admitted to the bar of Orleans county 
at the June term, 1842. In 1843 he was married to Miss Almira 
Kellum, daughter of Hon. Sabin Kellum of Irasburgh, and soon 
afterwards opened an office for the practice of his profession at 
Glover. Mr. Fletcher was a man of great energy in his profession, 
and perhaps it may be said of him that he had more energy than 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 157 

discretion. About the time he located in Glover, a very large 
amount of law business for that section of country sprung up, in 
which he became interested as counsel, and in some way he very 
frequently became interested pecuniarily in his client's cause. Mr. 
Fletcher was a man that always looked upon the bright side of his 
client's cause. He apparently had no doubt of its justness, and 
espoused it vigorously, and had he possessed more discretion it is 
quite likely he would have met with good success. For a year or 
two he brought more cases upon the docket of Orleans county court 
than any other lawyer in the county, but he had not calculated 
closely as to their merits, and the result was what usually follows in 
such cases. He had evidently tried to do too much, supposing that 
success lay in the great number of cases he could bring into court. 

Mr. Fletcher's great mistake was such as is quite often made by 
young lawyers, who are unwilling to wait until their industry has 
earned for them a valuable permanent reputation. After practicing 
law at Glover a few years he went to Derby Line to reside, remain- 
ing there, however, but a few months. Mr. Fletcher's professional 
career virtually ended with his residence in Glover. In 1S54 he 
went to California, where he died in 1875. 



EDWARD A. CAHOON. 

By Gkokck W. Cahoun, F.so. 

EDWARD A. CAHOON, the son of Hon. William Cahoon, 
was born at Lyndon in the year 181 8. After receiving an 
academical education he became a student of the University of 
Vermont, where he graduated in 1838. He studied law with 
George C. Cahoon at Lyndon, and was admitted as an attorney of 
Orleans county court at its December term, A. D. 1842. Immedi- 
ately on his admission to the bar he formed a copartnership with 
George C. Cahoon, and continued his partner until 1850. He con- 
tinued in the practice of his profession until he was elected cashier 
of the Bank of Lyndon at its organization. He was elected state's 
attorney for the county of Caledonia in 1854, and again elected in 
1855. He held the office of state senator for the years 1856 and 
1857. He was elected one of the presidential electors in i860 — 
Lincoln's first election, anil was chosen messenger to carry the 



158 BIOGRAPHY OF THE T.AK 

vote to Washington, as was his father, who was a presidential elec- 
tor at the election of James Madison. Edward A. Cahoon was 
elected one of the council of censors in the year 1862. He con- 
tinued the cashier of the Bank of Lyndon until his health failed 
him. He died of consumption in 1862, aged forty-four years. In 
the practice of his profession he was very successful. His educa- 
tion, his ability, and pleasing address made him popular and strong 
as an attorney and advocate. But before he had hardly attained 
the prime of manhood, he began to feel the effects of the disease 
that finally caused his death. And although he loved his profession 
of the law, its duties were too laborious for his state of health, and 
he consented to take the place of cashier of the Bank of Lyndon, 
where he labored as long as strength lasted. 



DAVID CHADWICK. 

By HON. Chari.ks Caki'KN iku. 

THE subject of this sketch was the son of a well-to-do farmer, 
in or near Worcester, Mass. He came to Vermont and went 
into trade at Derby Line, where he remained a short time, when 
he bought out the stock of goods of Ira Richards at Charleston, in 
1825. He conducted a very successful business until he attempted 
to build a large tannery, which is now the grist-mill at West 
Charleston. This caused his failure in 1832 or 1833. He then 
commenced the practice of law in a small way at Charleston, and 
was admitted to the bar of the Orleans county court at its Decem- 
ber term, 1842. He was a social, genial man, and a good talker. 
He went from Charleston to Burke, where he spent the remaining 
years of his life. He married Mary Hinman of Stanstead, P. O., 
by whom he had two daughters. 



JOHN L. EDWARDS. 

By Hon. Geokgk N. Dai.k. 

JOHN LINDSLEY EDWARDS was born at Walden,Vt., August 
27, 1 8 19. His father, Timothy Edwards, was born in Haverhill, 
Mass., in 1773, and removed to Walden, Vt.,in 1794. That year he 
married Nancy Gilmanof Gilmanton, N. H.,and by her became the 





t^/fLyt-^i^Zyy^cZ^ 



ORLEANS COUNTV, VKKMONT. I 59 

father of thirteen chiklren, John L. being the eleventh. His early life 
was spent on the farm antl at the district schools, where he acquired 
those frugal and industrious habits which have ever since attended 
him. He fitted for college at Newbury Seminary, and entered the 
University of Vermont in 1840, and remained there one year, when 
his desire to study law led him to enter the law office of the late 
Hon. Stoddard B. Colby of Derby, from which he was admitted to 
the bar of Orleans county at the June term, 1843. Opening an 
office in Brownington over the "Stewart store," so called, he 
remained there until January, 1844. His business promised to be 
of more than a strictly local nature, and he then removed to Bar- 
ton, and from thence to Derby Center in October, 1S45. 

At the latter place he formed a copartnership with William IVI. 
Dickerman, a young man of unusual promise, under the firm name 
of Edwards & Dickerman, which continued about two years. At 
its termination Mr. Edwards continued alone until the spring of 
1859, when he was associated with Gen. S. W. Slade of St. Johns- 
bury, for a short time, doing an extensive business in Orleans, Cal- 
edonia, Essex, and other counties, as he did before and after that 
partnership. In the fall of 1857 he went into business with Judge 
E. A. Stewart, as Edwards & Stewart. In 1864 that partnership 
business was closed out, and another one formed with Hon. J. E. 
Dickerman, under the old name of Edwards & Dickerman, which 
has since continued, John Young entering the firm in 18S1. In 
politics Mr. Edwards was a whig until 1856, since which time he 
has been in accord with the democratic party. 

He was appointed state's attorney for Orleans county by the leg- 
islature in 1850. He was a member of the constitutional conven- 
tion in 1850 and 1857, and of the council of censors in 1862. In 
1867-8 he was a candidate of the democracy for the office of gov- 
ernor and for member of congress in 1874 and 1876. In these 
campaigns his local popularity was strikingly manifested. In 1872 
he was appointed register in bankruptcy, and held the office until 
the law creating it was repealed. 

While in that position his decisions were carefully considered, 
and much respected by the courts in obedience to which he acted, 
and held in high esteem by the bar. In make-up the subject of 
this sketch is a tall, spare man, with features prominent, yet not 
gross, rather indicating a ilelicate organism. I cannot better 



l6o niOGRAPHY OF THE BAR 

describe his appearance or motions than to say that they are sug- 
gestive of a wavy, curving grace, being quite easy and elastic in his 
address, creating no impression of abruptness. His hair is now, at 
sixty-six years of age, jet black, and (in singular contrast with his 
face) looks darker than it did even in his younger days. He is dig- 
nified and reserved, yet affable and blandly congenial. 

His nice literary taste almost borders on fastidiousness, and yet 
he is a plodding, practical man. He takes in the details of a case 
rather slowly, but when it is all discovered to the mind's eye the 
picture is complete with every feature distinct and well adjusted. 
I have known him in instances of great haste to perform intricate 
and difficult work with most remarkable rapidity. But generally he 
is deliberate, considerate, and very cautious. He excels as a special 
pleader, being happy in formulating legal propositions so as to meet 
every issue and point made by his opponent. He states the law or 
a fact so that the statement will be correct, as well as the concep- 
tion of it in his mind. 

The remarkable aptness of the man in stating a case, and his 
skill in the use of language so as to give clearness and comprehen- 
siveness to the details, renders him efficient as a chancery lawyer, 
and one of the most desirable of referees. 

No man at the bar is more genial and full of jest in the amenities 
of professional life, and although possessed of lively and healthy 
prejudices, at times most satirically flavored, he generally manages 
to detach them from himself and make them a part of his case, in 
which he often uses them in lightning thrusts, which leave traces 
of the life-blood of the "other man's case" on his cutting and 
almost noiseless sentences, e. g : On one occasion the interest 
which he represented charged that a guardian had abused his 
wards, and among other things that the little children had actually 
suffered from want of food. It was replied that all their wants were 
supplied, and that great care had been bestowed upon them, even 
to teaching them the little exercises of children's prayer. "Yes," 
said Mr. Edwards, with the keenest and quietest irony imaginable, 
"With what fervency and religious appetite those poor little chil- 
dren must have repeated those prayers, especially this clause, 'give 
us this day our daily bread.' " 

As a jury advocate this man is very insinuating, always going 
with grave features, temperately, warily and skilfully. If he fails 



ORLEANS COUNTV, VERMONT. l6l 

to convince the jury he secures their respect, antl the interview is 
always mutually pleasant. He is never boisterous. From him 
there are no sudden bursts of eloquence, but only that his keen 
pure style at times is fired with an ardor corresponding to its kind. 
It is of the delicate and sensitive type. One of the chief respects 
in which he e.xcels as an advocate is in presenting the most ingen- 
ious grouping and arrangement of facts and circumstances. His 
peculiar genius is probably at its best when dealing with circum- 
stantial evidence, which he arranges in the most formidable man- 
ner, and which he runs through reviewing and rearranging a piiori 
and a posteriori backward and forward in such a quiet and ingen- 
ious manner as to make it the most convincing, and whether suc- 
cessful or otherwise, he seldom fails to elicit the admiration of his 
auditors. 

He goes to the cross-examination of witnesses with a thorough 
knowledge of the details of his case. 

He artfully conceals the design of his examination, so that the 
witness will unconsciously throw off any partisan attitude, and per- 
mit him to mould the most favorable features of the evidence to 
the purposes of his case. 

Although absorbed by the practice of his profession to which he 
is as entirely devoted as his health will allow, it never has betrayed 
him into exclusively materialistic thoughts. I mean that the fine 
fancies of his life are not lost in its dull realities. Although he is 
from his manner of life and occupation a matter of fact man, amid 
his prosaic work he still retains his poetic fancies. I heard him 
recently, in denouncing some abuse of legal authority, repeat the 
followmg: " Man, proud man; dressed with 

A little brief authority, 

Most ignorant of what he's most assured. 

His glassy essence, like an angry ape. 

Plays such fantastic tricks before high ht-aven. 

As make the angels weep ! " 

with all the zest and fancy of a poet born. This is so characteris- 
tic of the man that I may be pardoned this abrupt reference to it. 
The trend of his mind runs not to the ideal, and yet in discussing 
literature he is as likely to weave into the conversation something 

''■^^ " One morn a Peri at the gate 

Of Eden stood, discon.solate," etc.. 



I 62 lUOGKAPHV OF THE BAR 

as anything else. It was doubtless a misfortune that he was held 
to life by an uncommonly brittle thread, especially in his earlier 
years, but it was what was required to develop just the man he is. 
Fearing to confine himself to his office, and reluctant to remain 
idle, he has devoted considerable time to building residences, which 
he has done with such skill, taste and economy, that while it has 
been a pastime and physical restorative, it has been profitable men- 
tally as well as otherwise. He often boasts in a modest way of his 
architectural and agricultural attainments. His enterprise in this 
direction has not been narrow or selfish, as evidenced by his inter- 
est and active services in building and maintaining the Derby 
Academy, the state library building, as a member of the com- 
mittee on its location, and in the planning and erection of the new 
court-house at Newport. But I forget that I am to write of him as 
a lawyer, who accomplished much in life, and of whom I am 
expected to write truthfully and to estimate him according to my 
best judgment and ability, for history should be truth or silence. 

But this much is fact, that he loves the purities of law and 
regards it as among the very highest orders of science. He has 
come to be possessed of a legal mind among the finest in the state, 
and has been identified with some of the most important litigation 
therein. 

He has drawn that "brief" into as huge a volume as the bright- 
est hopes could ask. 

He was married December 1 1,1847, to Miss Elizabeth C. Brigham, 
daughter of Silas Brigham of Brownington. Having no children 
of their own, they adopted Nellie L. Dorman when she was about 
eight years of age, constituting her a member of their family by 
the name of Nellie. Thus has his success been crowned with most 
fortunate antl harmonious domestic relations. 

May he long continue to grace and enliven that bar of which he 
is one of the eldest and most honored members. 

Palmam qui meruit fcrat. 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 163 

WILLIAM M. DICKER MAN. 

By Hon. John L. Edwakhs. 

WILLIAM M. DICKERMAN wa.s born in Burke, Vt., 
August 13, 1820. Soon after his birth his father, Dr. 
Dickerman, removed to St. Johnsbury, where he resided till a short 
time before his death, which occurred at his daughter's residence in 
Keene, N. H., in 1869. 

Here at St. Johnsbury William M. received his common school 
education. In the fall of 1837 he became a student at the New- 
bury Seminary when that institution was in the height of its use- 
fulness. At this time the institution numbered very many advanced 
students, large numbers of whom were annually fitted for college 
under the instruction and supervision of the Rev. Charles Adams 
and the Rev. Osman C. Baker, afterwards Bishop Baker. Among 
this large number of accomplished scholars, none gained a more 
enviable reputation than young Dickerman. He was a hard worker 
and very soon stood among the first in his class. It was difficult 
to tell in what particular branch of learning he most excelled, for 
he was uniformly excellent in all. He had a great natural talent 
for debate, and at this institution he cultivated it assiduously. His 
voice was naturally very heavy and bordering upon harshness, but 
there was a power in it, which, backed up by logical ideas, never 
failed to interest and convince his hearers. In these scholastic 
debates he shadowed forth the coming man. 

Mr. Dickerman remained at this institution, except during the 
winter season when he was engaged in teaching, until the summer 
of 1840 when he entered the University of Vermont at Burlington. 
Although as a scholar he was rarely excelled, yet his mind was 
constantly reaching out for something practical. He seemed anx- 
ious to get out into the practical business world, and stimulated 
doubtless in this direction by his meager finances, he severed his 
connection with the institution in 1841 and immediately entered 
upon the study of the law which he had long contemplated. He 
entered upon the study of the law in the office of the late Stoddard 
B. Colby at Derby, and after the usual course was admitted to the 
bar in 1843. After that Mr. Dickerman practiced law on his own 
account in Essex and Caledonia counties till the fall of 1845, when 
he entered into [lartnership with John L. Ivlwards at Derby, Vt. 



164 BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR. 

This partnership continued for a little over two years when it was 
dissolved, and Mr. Dickerman opened an office at Coventrj', where 
he married Eunice D. Boynton of that town, November 21, 1847. 

Mr. Dickerman had quite a taste for agriculture and at one time 
came very near leaving the practice of law and taking up agricul- 
tural pursuits. But his numerous clients would not allow him to 
do this. His services as a lawyer were in too great demand. More 
business came than he could well do, and eventually his arduous 
endeavors to serve all his clients broke down a naturally vigorous 
and strong constitution. 

Mr. Dickerman was a representative from the town of Coventry 
in the legislature in the years iS49and 1850. He held the position 
of assistant secretary of the senate in 185 1 and 1852. He was 
elected by popular vote state's attorney for the county of Orleans 
in 1852 and 1853. 

As a lawyer Mr. Dickerman always took a broad view of his cli- 
ent's cause. He disliked to be trammeled with technicalities. He 
readily saw and appreciated the strong equities of his case, and 
brought everything to bear in that direction. His great kncnvledge 
of human nature, with a large practical knowledge of every day 
affairs and a strong instinct for the right, made him a most formid- 
able competitor before a jury. His great talent for debate, mani- 
fested in his school-boy days, showed itself admirably in after years 
before the jury. 

At the time Mr. Dickerman came to the bar the legal profession 
in Orleans county stood very high, and no man could take a posi- 
tion at that bar without earning it. His competitors were such 
men as Judge Timothy P. Redfield, Stoddard B. Colby, E. G. 
Johnson, Charles W. Prentiss, John H. Kimball, Samuel Sumner, 
Judge Paddock, N. S. Hill and Jessie Cooper, while from abroad 
were Judge Poland, Benjamin Smalley and Thomas liartlett, and 
many others worthy of note. These all stood in advance of the 
young lawyer when he came to the Orleans county bar. It was not 
long, however, before Mr. Dickerman found himself side by side 
with these learned gentlemen in the advocacy of causes. 

He threw all his energies into his case and really sacrificed him- 
self for the cause of his client. 

As a debater in the legislature Mr. Dickerman had few equals. 
He maintained a commanding influence in the tlisposition of the 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 1 65 

business, and created a wide circle of acquaintance throughout the 
state, by whom his early death was greatly lamented. 

In 1854 his health gradually gave way to such an extent that he 
abandoned business entirely, and about 1857 removed to Manches- 
ter, N. H., where he died on the 14th of April, 1859. His 
remains now repose in the family burial ground at St. Joimsbury, Vt. 



CHARLES H. PARKER. 

By VV. H. P.AUKKK. 

CHARLES H. PARKER was born at Cambridge, Vt., about 
the year 1S25. He was the son of Maj. Thomas Parker, a 
man of more than ordinary ability. He obtained his education at 
the common schools of his native town. After he attained his 
majority he studied law with Samuel Willard, Esq., at Morristown, 
and commenced practice at North Troy, Orleans county, Vt., where 
he remained in active practice until August, 1847, when he removed 
to Janesville, Wis., and from there to San F"rancisco, Cal., where 
he now resides, and there entered into a law partnership with F~. 
Waterman, formerly from Johnson, Vt. Mr, Parker is an able and 
well-read lawyer, and his practice and sj^eculations have been very 
remunerative, and it is understood that he has amassed a larce 
fortune. 

WILLIAM T. BARRON. 

A1U)UT the early history of the subject of this .sketch I have 
been able to learn but little, except that he studied law in 
Derby, and was admitted to the Orleans county bar in 1844, and 
commenced practice at Irasburgh, Vt.; that he removed from 
there to Guildhall, and was in active practice there until about 1850. 
According to the Vermont Historical Magazine he was state's 
attorney for the county of Essex for the years 1845 and 1846. About 
185 I he removed to "Chicago, 111., and went into partnership with 
Paul Cornell, and continued in practice with him until 1856, when 
he severed his connection with Cornell and formed a jiartnership 
with a man by the name of Rogers. In 1857 he was elected judge 
of the county court, and continued in office until the time of his 



l66 ISIOGKAPHY OF THE I5AK 

untimely death, January i8, 1862. He was killed in a collision 
between trains on the Illinois Central Railroad at Hydepark, at the 
Kenwood station. Of his attainments as a lawyer and judge Paul 
Cornell of Chicago, his old partner and a prominent lawyer, says : 
" Judge Barron becarne a man of extensive influence, and was 
very highly esteemed by all who became acquainted with him. 
His legal ability was of a high order, and tended rather to the 
bench than as an advocate. His integrity was above reproach, a 
man of great industry, and had he lived would doubtless been one 
of our most eminent judges. Too much cannot be said of his 
ability as a methodical, conscientious lawyer." 



OLIVER TAYLOR BROWN. 

By Hon. |ijnathan Koss. 

OIJVER TAYLOR BROWN, the son of Elisha and Mehita- 
ble Brown, was born at Waterford, Vt., June 2, 1817. Besides 
at the common schools, he attended several terms both at Lyndon 
Academy and at Newbury Academy. He studied law first with J. 
D. Stoddard, Esq., then of Waterford, and subsequently with Judge 
Samuel Prentiss at Montpelier. While pursuing his academic and 
legal studies, he taught in the common schools several terms, and 
acquired the reputation of a successful teacher. He was fond of 
music, a very good singer, and violinist. He was admitted to the 
bar at its June term, A. D. 1844. Soon thereafter he commenced 
the practice of his profession at Coventry. While there he mar- 
ried Harriet, the daughter of Rev. Drury Fairbanks of Littleton, 
N, H. He moved from Coventry to East St. Johnsbury in 184S. 
While at Coventry his wife died, leaving an infant daughter who 
died at East St. Johnsbury just as she was ripening into woman- 
hood. Her death was a severe blow to Mr. Brown. He married 
for his second wife Miss Bean of Coventry, by whom he had sev- 
eral children. While at East St. Johnsbury he had quite a practice 
in Caledonia and Essex counties. He was a good counselor and a 
fair jury -trial lawyer. He had a good legal mind. He was never 
strong physically, and was not able to endure as much hard labor 
in the practice of his profession, or otherwise, as most men. In 
1 872, wishing to furnish his children better educational advantages. 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. I67 

he moved to St. Johnsbury, where he ihed March 13, 18S1, at the 
age of sixty-four years. Most of the time while he lived at St. 
Johnsbury his health was very poor. He lost, in a great measure, 
his voice. He still continued the practice of his profession to the 
extent his health would allow. Mr. Brown was possessed of a kind 
of dry wit, which on occasions amused his brethren and the court. 
On one occasion, while reading an authority to the supreme court, 
he was interrupted by the . presiding judge with "Mr. Brown, you 
need not trouble yourself to read further from that authority. The 
court are entirely familiar with it." To which Mr. Brown instantly 
replied, " Please your honor, I was not reading to familiarize the 
court, but myself with the authority." Again, a presiding judge in 
the county court had come down on Mr. Brown pretty severely dur- 
ing the closing business of the term, and was himself in great trib- 
ulation for fear he should not get away in time to take the train, and 
was giving full e.^pression to the fear that he might miss the train. 
As he was hurrying out of the court-house, Mr. Brown turned to 
his brethren with the remark, " I hope he wont get left." Mr. 
Brown always believed in, and was faithful to his clients. They 
could hardly be in the wrong because they were his clients. He 
was very fond of his children and did all he could to give them a 
good education. With a large family and poor health he never 
acquired much property. His son, Edward D. Brown, novi' a suc- 
cessful lawyer and real estate agent at Minneapolis, Minn., he 
assisted to fit for college at the St. Johnsbury Academy, and after- 
wards to take the full collegiate course at Dartmouth College. His 
two surviving daughters graduated at the St. Johnsbury Academy. 
The widow and one unmarried daughter are with the son at Minne- 
apolis. The other daughter married Edmund K. Houghton, the 
son of Ur. Arvin Houghton, a native of Eyndon, Vt. They reside 
with his father at Charlestown, Mass. 



B. W. POOR. 



BW. POOR came to Glover in 1844. He was a young man 
• and had no family. He remained less than a year, and then 
went to Johnson, Vt., where he remained but a year. 



l6S IMdCKAl'IlV OF THE BAR 

> ELKANAH WINCHESTER. 

ELK AN AH WINCHESTER was a native of New Hamp- 
shire, his parents living at Westmoreland. In 1842 or 1843 
Mr. Winchester came to Glover with Daniel Gray, and soon after 
he came, commenced the study of the law with Hon. Timothy P. 
Redfield at Irasburgh, and was admitted to the Orleans county bar 
June 28, 1844. He was very soon taken sick, and died at the house 
of Olim Gray in Glover, the same year. 



T 



NATHANIEL SAUNDERS CLARK, 2d. 

By Hon. Jacok M. Ci.ark. 

HE subject of this biography was born jn Barnet, Vt., August 
5, 1820, and died at Junction Grove near Chicago, III, April 
18, 1866. He was a son of Rev. Jacob S. and Sally (Merrill) 
Clark, his ancestors being of revolutionary stock. His grandfather, 
Nathaniel S. Clark, was taken prisoner near Burlington, Vt., in 
Montgomery's expedition, afterwards exchanged, and rejoined his 
regiment. His maternal grandfather was quartermaster of the day 
at Bunker Hill ; both served until the end of the war. Mr. Clark 
early acquired an exceptionally good common school education, and 
then at the Brownington, Orleans county. Academy, under Rev. A. 
L. Twilight, he gained a sufficient knowledge of languages and the 
higher branches to qualify him for professional study. He studied 
law with Jessie Cooper at Irasburgh, Vt., and was admitted to the 
bar of the Orleans county court July 3, 1845. He commenced 
practice in Brownington, but soon moved to West Charleston, 
where he practiced until 1848, a part of the time associated with 
now Hon. John L. Edwards, who was at Derby Center. 

In 1848, after the death of his first wife, he closed his law office, 
and commenced engineering under his brother Jacob M. Clark, 
continuing with him until the close of 1849. 

In 1850 he superintended the construction of some important 
works for the Vermont & Canada Railroad ; then opened an office 
at Milton, Vt., but afterwards moved to Burlington, and went into 
the office of Hon. William B, Peck. While residing at Burlington 
he superintended, as engineer, the erection of the Pioneer machine 
shop com pan)- works. 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 1 69 

In 1853-4 he was engineering with his brother in Lower Canada. 
Early in 1856 he went to Junction Grove (then Chicago Junction), 
and became agent at that point for the Michigan Southern and 
Northern Indiana Railroad and postmaster and magistrate of the 
place, which positions he held until his death. Mr. Clark would 
espouse no cause as a lawyer unless founded in right. His judg- 
ment in seizing the key point of a case, irrespective of details, was 
quick and sound. He was social, genial, generous and brave. He 
was an excellent engineer and skillful artisan. He was an able and 
effective teacher, when so engaged, as many in the county will 
remember, and always fond of conducting affairs where men were 
oreanized to do effective work. In the administration of affairs 
intrusted to him he was uniformly prompt, energetic, faithful and 
exact. He left the record of a valued official, and worthy citizen. 



EBEN A. RANDALL. 

EBEN A. RANDALL, the third child of William and Debo- 
' rah (Kate) Randall, was born in Greensboro, Vt., November 
15, 181S. He was educated at the common schools, and attended 
the academies at Burlington and some other places. He studied 
law with James Bell of Walden, and Bliss N. Davis of Danville, 
and was admitted to the bar of Orleans county January i, 1845, 
and at once commenced the practice of his profession at Greens- 
boro. He was elected representative for the town of Greensboro 
in 1850, and deceased at Montpelier during the session at the 
■ age of thirty-two years. He was a member of Caledonia Lodge 
of Odd Fellows. He was married July 20, 1844, to Nancy Web- 
ster of Greensboro. 



ISAAC N. CUSHMAN. 

By Hon. T. P. RKHKlKI.Ii. 

ISAAC N. CUSHMAN, being a member of the bar of the 
county, was long the clerk of the court, and it is fitting that his 
name should have conspicuous place on the more permanent records 
of the bar of the county. He was born in Woodstock, Windsor 
county, March 24, 1821. His father, bearing the same name, was 



I/O llIOCiKAPHY OF THE BAR 

a lawyer, and a leading and one of the most distinguished advocates 
of the bar in the state. The family soon moved to Hartford in the 
same county, and owned and carried on a farm as a family home- 
stead. In 1837 Mr. Cushman became a member of Capt. Par- 
tridge's Military School at Norwich, Vt., and in June, 1838, he 
entered the United States Military Academy at West Point, and 
remained a member of the school until July i, 1840. During that 
time Grant, Sherman, and many of the distinguished generals on 
both sides in the late civil war were cadets in that institution, of 
whom he often spoke during and since the war. While at West 
Point he found a sum of money which had been accidentally left or 
lost ; it was advertised and the owner could not be found, and after 
the search for the owner proved vain he invested the money in lem- 
ons, and invited in "the boys;" among his guests of "the boys" 
was Grant. Mr. Cushman's standing at West Point was very good, 
more especially in mathematics. He taught district school several 
winters at Hartland and other places, and in 1842 he taught a 
select school for about one year, and his spare time he employed in 
reading law in his father's office. He went to Milwaukee, Wis., 
and practiced land surveying which he learned at West Point, in 
which he was proficient. 

His father's death in 1843, called him home, when he purchased 
the old homestead burdened with a mortgage of $1,400, which he 
essayed to pay off by school-teaching and support a family of inva- 
lids, which proved impracticable. In 1845 he resumed the study of 
the law in the office of Judge T. P. Redfield at Irasburgh in Orleans 
county, and was admitted to the bar January 2, 1847, and went at 
once to Glover and opened an office for the practice of the law. In 
1849 he was elected representative to the legislature from the town 
of Glover, and during the session of the legislature he was elected 
judge of probate for the district of Orleans, and at the close of the 
session he removed to Irasburgh, where he resided until his death, 
September 29, 1881. The honorary degree of Master of Arts was 
conferred upon him in 1852 by the Vermont University. When 
the constitution of the state was changed in 1850 making officers 
elective, he was elected judge of probate, and continued to hold 
that office until March, 1854, when he was appointed cashier of the 
15ank of Orleans, situated at Irasburgh, and held that position 
until lie was elected clerk of the court of that county in 1861, 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. ]Jl 

which he held until his death. He was also at that time elected 
county treasurer, which he held the like period of time. Mr. Cush- 
man was elected representative to the legislature also from the 
town of Irasburgh, also senator from the county of Orleans, and 
many other offices of trust and responsibility, and had the full con- 
fidence of the people. He was married to Miss Sally Geddes, May 
'3' '855, and had three children, two of whom survive him. 

Mr. Cushman was a natural scholar, and was not the ordinary and 
common type of men. He read with relish all the British classics, 
and his mind was fully stored from Addison, Goldsmith, Sterne, 
Steele, Johnson and Burke. He was more familiar with the English 
classics than any other member of the bar in the county. He had 
what Byron said of Sheridan, 

" Wit, poesy and mirth, 

That humble humorist of care on earth." 

His wit was spontaneous and never used to wound any one, but 
genial and kindly. We remember at the February term ne.xt before 
his death, in trying a case to the jury, counsel inveighed harshly 
against his adversary, and deeply stirred his Irish blood. After the 
court adjourned the offended Irish advocate met the offender in 
the clerk's office, and called upon him to retract and apologize. He 
repeated and affirmed the offensive language. Boiling with wrath 
the stalwart offended advocate advanced towards the offender, 
reaching out with the great muscles of his arm at full tension, say- 
ing, "You miserable, lying dog, I will throw you through the window." 
"HoldV said Cushman, "I shall object to that in this inclement 
season." The howling north wind beating furiously against the 
window panes with a thermometer below 25 ° Fahrenheit, was too 
suggestive, and averted the scene of the great north window in 
the clerk's office in the court-house, being shivered to atoms, and 
the impudent advocate struggling amid the debris of broken glass 
and window-sashes, to save life. Mr. Cushman, from a constitu- 
tional habit, was modest, reticent, and even bashful. It required 
the "stirring him up" to disclose the gold and gems that were in 
him, and that would open the generous treasure of his careful read- 
ing of the best English authors. Here he was ever rich, and enter- 
taining in social life and as a companion. He held all the public 
offices that the town and county could give, and everybody was his 
friend. The ne.xt session after his death the bar of the county 



172 RIOGRAPHY OF THE CAR. 

assembled, and passed resolutions of sorrow and regret at his 
death, and speaking in the highest terms of him as the clerk of the 
court and as a man and a citizen. When the resolutions were pre- 
sented to the court, Judge Redfield presiding, from whose office he 
had been qualified and admitted to the bar, strongly commended 
the resolutions, and ordered them to be placed on the records of 
the court. ^ 



HENDERSON CAMPBELL WILSON. 

By William W. Grout. 

HENDERSON CAMPBELL WILSON was the son of Dur- 
fcc Wilson, a carpenter by trade, and was born at Champlain, 
N. Y., on the 8th day of June, 1826, and went with his father at an 
early age to live in Colchester, Vt. 

His mother was Fanny Campbell, who traced her ancestry to the 
Campbells of Scotland, from whence her father came, and at an 
early day settled in Cambridge, Vt. At the great age of eighty- 
seven years while at work in the woods, full of vigor and strength, 
he was killed by a falling tree. Young Wilson was educated in the 
common schools and in the academies at Bakersfield and Burling- 
ton. He taught school at Colchester in the winters of 1844 and 
1845, and in Fairfield in the winter of 1846-7. He read law at 
Bakersfield with his cousin, the Hon. William C. Wilson, late an 
associate judge of the supreme court of Vermont, and was admitted 
to the bar at St. Albans at the September term of the Franklin 
county court, A. D. 1847. Immediately upon completing his stud- 
ies — October 22, 1847 — he settleJ at North Troy, Vt., where he has 
ever since resided. North Troy was a small village at that time, 
but the locality proved a good one for business, and Lawyer Wilson 
soon found himself actively engaged in professional work. It can 
be said of him that during his thirty-five years' practice in Troy he 
has never had an attorney's sign upon his office, but has always done 
a good business, and has never missed a term of court in Orleans 
county; and perhaps it might also be added has never missed being 
ready for trial in any case that he really wanted to try. 

There is hardly a member of the Orleans county bar but will 
recall occasions where it seemed that some case of Wilson's would 



^f 





ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. I73 

surely be reached in his absence, thus enabling the other side to 
have everything their own way ; but just before it was "too late" 
Wilson would always be on the ground with every witness in line. 
His business from the first was a successful and profitable one. 
His cases were always well prepared and thoroughly tried. He 
always acted on the maxim that " good testimony makes a good 
case," and seldom, if ever, found himself a witness short. Since 
he went to reside in Troy no considerable legal controversy has 
arisen in that part of Orleans county known as The Valley, in 
which he has not taken a part. 

His business from the first was remunerative, and possessing a 
natural taste for farming he has put largely of his accumulations 
into real estate. He also has a taste and capacity for traffic, as his 
profitable transactions in real estate and almost every kind of per- 
sonal property fully attest. Mr. Wilson was for many years the 
agent of George Atchin.son of London, England, in the care and 
sale of large tracts of land owned by him in Orleans county, and 
until said lands were all disposed of. Enterprising and public- 
spirited, Mr. Wilson has always taken a lively interest in all the 
public improvements of his town and county. He was one of the 
active promoters of the South-Eastern Railway, and was the attorney 
of the late Col. A. B. Foster while manager of that road. 

He was also actively engaged together with Hon. William G. 
Elkins, Col. O. N. Elkins and John W. Currier of Troy, and Hon. 
Luther Baker of Richford, and the late Lucius Robinson of New- 
port, in the construction of the Missisquoi & Clyde River Railroad, 
and, from its organization, has been one of the directors in that 
company. Mr. Wilson has been repeatedly honored by the confi- 
dence of the people of his town and county. 

He was elected state's attorney for Orleans county for the years 
1855 and i860. He was representative from his town for the years 
1863 and 1864, and was senator from Orleans county for the years 
1872 and 1874. In the house he was chairman of the committee 
on claims and in the senate was chairman of the committee on the 
judiciary. 

It is recording what is well known to say that Mr. Wilson dis- 
charged the duties of all these public trusts with fidelity and ability. 

Mr. Wilson was married to Miss Mary Ann Porter on the 22d 
day of October, A. I). 1S50, just three years, to a day, from the time 
23 



174 IJIOGKAPHY OF THE liAK 

he opened his office in Troy; and now in 1886 Mr. and Mrs. Wilson 
are able to say that in the whole town of Troy there are living at 
this time but three other married couples who were living in town 
at the time of their marriage. 

Mr. and Mrs. Wilson have had four children, two of whom arc 
living. 

THOMAS ABBOTT. 

THOMAS ABBOTT, the son of Thomas K. and Abigail 
(Boyngton) Abbott, was born at Derby Line, Vt., and was 
educated in the common schools and Brownington Academy. He 
studied law with Jessie Cooper of Irasburgh, and was admitted to 
the Orleans county bar at its June term, A. D. 1848, and at once 
commenced the practice of law at Barton, where he remained two 
years. From there he went to Millsbury, Mass., where he practiced 
until 1855, when he removed to West Union, Iowa, and practiced 
law until 1859, when he removed to Independence, Iowa, where he 
still lives. Mr. Abbott enlisted and served in the Forty-seventh 
Iowa Infantry in the late war, where he contracted disease, so that 
at the close of the war he did not resume practice. Mr. Abbott 
married Ann M. Chadwick, and has two sons — Fred M. who is pas- 
tor of the Congregational church of Marseilles, III, and Edward B., 
a law student at home. 



T 



JOHN P. SARTLE. 

HE subject of this biography was born at Stowe, Vt., August 
7, 18 1 8, the son of Calvin and Eda (Herrick) Sartle. He 
attended the common schools and village academy, and for a while 
attended an academy at Hinsdale, 111. He early learned the trade 
of a carpenter, and labored at his trade when not teaching until 
1842, when he moved to Lowell, Orleans county, Vt., and built a 
saw-mill. Lowell was quite a new town, and one in which there 
was much litigation regarding lands, tax titles, adverse possession, 
and the like. 

Mr. Sartle had a very good education and was quite apt and 
shrewd, and the result was he soon appeared as counselor in nearly 
all the justice trials of the town, and they were many, with excel- 
lent success. At one of these justice trials he encountered Nor- 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 175 

man Boardman, an attorney at South Troy, who had a large 
practice, and who was so favorably impressed with Sartle's ability 
and skill in handling causes, that he urged him to move to Troy 
and sro into his office as a student, offering him a share of the busi- 
ness to enable him to support his family until he could be admitted 
to the bar and start for himself, assuring him that he would most 
certainly succeed in the profession of the law. Thereupon Mr. 
Sartle sold out his mill and other interests in Lowell and went to 
Troy, entering upon the study of the law with his new found 
friend. He was admitted to the bar of Orleans county at the 
December term, A. D. 1848, and soon thereafterward commenced 
the practice of his profession at Barton, where he remained in 
active practice until his death, which took place June 17, 1872. 
Mr. Sartle was state's attorney for the county of Orleans for the 
years 1855-56. When the United States Bankruptcy Act became 
a law he was appointed one of the four registers of the state, and 
held the office until his death. Mr. Sartle was a man of great 
force, energy and persistence. One who studied with him, now a 
prominent lawyer of the West, says of him : " In his profession I 
have seen harder students, greater plodders, but I do not remember 
ever to have met a lawyer with quicker and truer legal intuition. 
His ability in that respect always seemed to me to be something 
marvelous, and many times he could accomplish more in one day 
than most lawyers could in a week." Mr. Sartle was twice married. 
In 1842 to Miss Lucinda Perkins Williams, a lady highly and deserv- 
edly esteemed for her many virtues by all who knew her, who 
deceased, leaving two children — William J. Sartle, who was edu- 
cated at West Point, and at the time of his death, June 27, 1873, 
was regiment adjutant of the fifteenth regular infantry with Gen. 
Gordon Granger, and acting assistant adjutant-general for the dis- 
trict of New Mexico with headquarters at Santa Fe, and Mrs. Net- 
tie Sartle Clark of Peoria, 111. Subsequently he married again, 
and by this marriage had one son, Harry Sartle. 



WILLIAM HEATH. 

WILLIAM HEATH came to Derby from Stanstead, P. O., 
about 1845, and pursued the study of the law with E. G- 
Johnson, Esq., and was admitted a member of the Orleans county 
bar at the June term, A. D. 1848, and soon left the state. 



176 lilOGKAPHV OF THE liAR 

HENRY HEWITT FROST. 

From funeral sermon delivered at Coventry, November 27, 1859, by Rev. I'liny H. White. 

HENRY HEWITT FROST was the fifth child and second 
son of Loring and Abigal Bosvvell Frost, and was born in 
Coventry, August 24, 1825. When he was not quite three years 
old he was deprived of his mother by death, a loss which he could 
not then appreciate, but which in after life he fully appreciated and 
sincerely deplored, although he never lacked the fullest respect and 
the warmest affection for her who took the place of the mother that 
bore him. His childhood and youth were characterized by a defer- 
ence and obedience to parental authority, as admirable as it is rare. 
In fact, his whole life was very marked in this respect, and so punc- 
tiliously did he perform his filial duties that on a review of his life, 
near its close, he could say with a clear conscience " I never diso- 
beyed my father." His early years were spent upon his father's 
farm, faithfully and industriously doing his allotted part of the hard 
work which must needs be done in a new country. But it soon 
became apparent that mental exertion rather than physical toil was 
to be his employment. The district school, poorly taught, and attend- 
ed for only brief periods and at long intervals, could not furnish 
food enough for his mind. Every hour of leisure from work was 
eagerly devoted to books. What he read he retained, and held at 
ready command. So mature was his judgment even in youth, that 
he would read no fiction, but selected solid, substantial literature — 
history, biography, essay, and the like. During his whole life he 
read but a single novel, and that out of regard to a friend who pre- 
sented it to him. On his dying bed he requested that this should 
be examined by a competent person, and committed to the flames 
if there should be found in it anything prejudicial to morality or 
offensive to good taste. His example in that regard is worthy of 
all imitation, in this day, when the world is so deluged with ficti- 
tious literature, which is 

'• Oft crammed full 
Of poisonous error, blackening every page ; 
And oftener still of trifling second-hand 
Remarks, and old, diseased, putrid tliouglit, 
And miserable incident." 

After he arrived at the age of twenty-one he sought better edu- 
cational advantages than were to be had at Coventry. He attended 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 177 

for several months the academy at Brownington, then under the 
tuition of the Rev. A. L. Twilight, and spent a year and a half, in 
1847-S, at Thetford Academy, under the tuition of the distinguished 
instructor, Hiram Orcutt. He secured the entire confidence of 
his teachers, and made good proficiency in his studies. While at 
Thetford he commenced the study of law with Abijah Howard, 
Esq., and upon his return to Coventry pursued the study with 
Charles Story, Esq., completed his studies with William M. Dick- 
erman, Esq., and was admitted to the bar of Orleans county court 
July 6, 1850. He immediately commenced practice in his native 
town, where he continued, with a constantly increasing business, 
till sickness withdrew him from his labors. At the June term of 
court, 1858, he had an unusual amount of business, and labored 
night and day without sparing himself, and by his over-exertions 
laid the foundations of a lingering consumption which terminated 
in his death, November 25, 1859. 

Mr. Frost's distinguishing intellectual characteristic was sound 
common sense. No one faculty of his mind was so much devel- 
oped as to make the others seem dwarfish in comparison, but all 
were so evenly developed that his mind was well proportioned and 
balanced. His powers were also under good control, and he could 
bring them all to bear upon various and very different subjects. 
This gave him a versatility of talent which was of great service to 
his clients and to himself. In whatever he engaged he did it heart- 
ily, whether it were the study of professional books, the practice of 
law, the pursuit of his favorite science — geology, or any of the other 
things in which he, at different times, engaged. The result of all 
was that his townsmen had confidence in him as a man of business, 
and were giving him their confidence more and more. He was not 
without honor in his own county; in short, he was a "growing 
man," and bid fair to attain a good eminence as a lawyer and a citi- 
zen. Though he had little of that eloquence which makes the 
worse appear the better reason, he did not lack persuasiveness in 
argument, nor skill to put forward the strong points of his case. 
This he did with a candor and an evident confidence in the sound- 
ness of his positions, which secured attention and respect for the 
advocate, though it did not always gain his cause. His morality 
was of a high tone, and in one particular — honesty — it was of 
marked e.xcellence. His profession exposed him to peculiar temp- 



178 liUXiKAPHV OF THE UAR 

tations in that respect, but he stood absolutely upright amidst them 
all. No man who knew him, ever so much as suspected the slight- 
est deviation from the exact right in all pecuniary affairs, or doubt- 
ed that whatever he ought to account for would be accounted for 
to the very last farthing. 

He was hardly less energetic in paying to his clients the funds 
he had collected for them than in making the collection. A gentle- 
man residing in another county, who had formerly entrusted many 
demands to his care, said to me a few weeks since, "When Mr. 
Frost paid me the money that he had collected for me, I never 
looked the papers over ; I felt sure it was all right." I mention 
this trait in Mr. Frost's character, not because he did any more 
than his duty or than any one else ought to do in similar circum- 
stances, but because it was of such rare excellence that it deserves 
to be held up to approbation and imitation. A reputation such as 
he had in that particular is more valuable to a professional man 
than talents or learning, and a more precious legacy than silver or 
gold to bequeath to one's children. 



FERNANDO CARTER HARRINGTON. 

THE subject of this sketch was born at St. Johnsbury, Fast 
Village, June 3, A. D. 1830. His father, Jubal Harrington, 
was a merchant at that place, and a son of Leonard Harrington, 
the founder of the place, owning a grist, oil, and saw-mill, and a 
large farm. Jubal was afterwards a wholesale dealer in the city of 
New York. His mother's name was Arabella M. Hill, only daugh- 
ter of John Hill of the neighboring town of Waterford, one of the 
settlers of that town as early as 1804. Fernando commenced his 
school life at the district school of his native village, but at the age 
of eight years, his father having moved to New York, he was placed 
at school first at Ridgesfiekl, and afterward at New Canaan, Conn. 
Subsequently he commenced the study of the law in the office of 
Stoughton & Harrington, prominent attorneys of New York, Mr. 
Harrington being his father's brother. Life here not being in any 
way to his liking, he returned to Vermont, and continued his law 
studies with A. J. Willard at Lyndon Center, and afterwards with 
John L. Edwards at Derby Center, and was admitted to the bar 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. I 79 

from his office at the June term, A. D. iS5i,aiul at once com- 
menced the practice of his profession at West Charleston. There 
not being a large amount of law business to attend to, in June, 
1854, in connection with E. E. G. Wheeler, he commenced the pub- 
lication of a newspaper at West Charleston, called the North 
Union. They subsequently sold out to a stock company. After 
this Mr. Harrington was engaged lor some time as agent for the 
Grand Trunk Railway of Canada, in which business he was when 
the late war broke out. He enlisted in the third regiment, Ver- 
mont volunteers, and was mustered into service as captain of Co. 
D. He served with honor and credit. He had command of the 
party who made the charge across the creek at Lee's Mills, April 
16, 1S62. In September, 1863, he resigned, and on his return to 
Vermont was at once appointed by the governor state drill master, 
and assisted in fitting out later regiments. Soon after this he 
retired to the old homestead in St. Johnsbury, where he now 
resides, dividing his time between farmer, lawyer and publisher, as 
Mr. Harrington has given much time in the later years of his life 
•to writing for the papers and magazines, and has also written anil 
published several volumes of books. He was married September 6, 
1852, to Harriet A. Frost, daughter of Sumner Frost of Derby, by 
whom he hatl one son, now a merchant in Chicago. 



ALBERT M. HOLBROOK. 

THE subject of this sketch was born at Winchester, N. H., in 
1 82 1, the eldest son of Marcus and Abbie (Wild) Ht)lbrook. 

His mother was the daughter of Dr. Wild, the editor of Wild's 
almanac, and a notable man. Albert attended the common schools, 
and was sent to the Chesterfield Academy, where he obtained a 
very good academical education. 

He pursued the study of the law with Gove & Atherton of 
Nashua, and was admitted to the Hillsborough county bar in 1842, 
and commenced the practice of his profession at Lowell, Mass. 
After one year, ambitious to make more rapid progress, he went 
West, but soon returned to New Hampshire antl located at Salem, 
where he practiced law some si.\ or seven years, when he removed 
to Glover, Vt., about 185 i. Mr. Holbrook was a man of e.Ncellent 



l8o BIOGRAPHY OF THE I3AK. 

literary taste, and a forcible and interesting speaker. He is remem- 
bered by those who were students in the Orleans Liberal Institute 
in the tall of 1852, as delivering a lecture that fall upon education, 
which was full of good things well said. He was a very bright 
man and a good lawyer. He succeeded in obtaining quite a busi- 
ness, but his health soon failed, and he died October 22, 1853, aged 
thirty-one years. 

NATHANIEL TRACY SIIEAFE. 

By VV'Il.I.lA.M W. Gkout. 

N'ATHANIEL TRACY SHPLAFE was born at Portsmouth, 
N. H., about 1 81 7. His ancestors on both sides may be 
traced to the early Puritan stock of New England. His father's 
name was Jacob Sheafe. His mother's name was Mary Haven, the 
daughter of Jacob Haven, a clergyman of Portsmouth. 

In his early education he had the advantage of the excellent com- 
mon schools of that day, of Portsmouth, and of the Portsmouth 
Academy, where he fitted for college. He must have made good 
use of these opportunities for he was entered at Dartmouth in 
1 83 1, and graduated in 1835. 

In the fall of 1835 he took charge of the high school at Bellows 
Falls, Vt., and continued the principal for two years ; but his taste 
was for the law, and in 1837 he commenced the study of it in the 
office of Hon. "William C. Bradley of Westminster, Vt., then one of 
the best lawyers in the state, and was admitted to the Windham 
county bar in 1839. Immediately upon admission he opened an 
office in Bellows Falls, where he did a profitable and growing busi- 
ness till 1843, when he formed a copartnership with his old precep- 
tor, William C. Bradley and removed to Westminster. He con- 
tinued the partner of Mr. Bradley till 1851, when he removed to 
Derby Line, where he has since resided. He was for a time cashier 
of the bank at Derby Line, but soon resumed the practice of his 
profession. 

In 1863 and 1864 he was state's attorney for Orleans county. 
He was also auditor of the court expenses of the county for many 
years and until the law was changed and the state auditor took the 
immediate charge of court expenditures. 



OKI.EANS COUNTY, VERMONT. l8l 

Upon the passage of the present highway law Col. Sheafe (this 
title of colonel was derived by service upon the staff of some gov- 
ernor of Vernn)nt prior to i860), was made chairman of the board 
of road commissioners, for which position he is well fitted, not only 
by a large experience as special commissioner in road cases, but by 
the liberal and progressive spirit evinced by him in all public mat- 
ters. His strong love of justice was an additional qualification for 
this position and always made him available in the judgment of the 
court for auditor in book account cases and referee in important 
matters sent out under rule of court, to which service he was fre- 
quently called. It also equally well fitted him for commissioner of 
the United States Circuit Court, which position he has long held. 
He was also for several years prior to 1876 postmaster at Derby 
Line. The duties of all these several positions were discharged by 
him with fidelity and ability. 

Col. Sheafe's love for a fine horse and good cow was always grat- 
ified by the possession of excellent specimens of each. His taste 
was for the Morgan horse (now unfortunately nearly extinct), and 
the Jersey cow. He was, in fact the pioneer Jersey man in North- 
eastern Vermont. 

As a lawyer Mr. Sheafe's field of activity lies more in the prep- 
aration' than in the trial of causes in court, his retiring and unde- 
monstrative nature finding but little satisfaction in the sharj) 
encounters of the court-room. The careful preparation of cases 
for trial, however, is his especial pride, and so efficient is he 
esteemed in that department that in most of the important crimi- 
nal trials in the county he is called to assist in the preparation. 

But so pacific and conciliatory is he in his methods that in his 
own cases he almost invariably so manages that the parties them- 
selves come to a settlement of tJieir differences, thereby saving the 
expense and irritation of a trial. By this course he has undoubt- 
edly been much more useful to his clients and neighbors than if he 
had sought the solution of all questions by the court. In early life 
Col. Sheafe was married to Miss Margaret Hyde of Bellows Falls. 
Of him it may be truthfully said that he is a kind husband, an 
indultrent father and a most estimable friend. 



l82 lilOGKArilV OF THE F,AK 

JERRY E. DICKERMAN. 

By Hon. Georc.k N. Dalk. 

JERRY E. DICKERMAN, Senior, married Mariah E. Eletcher, 
and went to St. Johnsbury to reside about 1822, where the gen- 
tleman of whom I am writing was born January 15, 1830, and who 
is the fourth of five children born to said Jerry E. and Mariah. The 
senior was a practicing physician at Burke and St. Johnsbury. The 
junior having been born in a clean New England village and reared 
in the midst of respectable and desirable surroundings, became 
deeply imbued with the habits, characteristics, and sentiments 
peculiar to a New Englander. 

His common school and academical education acquired at New- 
bury, St. Johnsbury and Derby, gave him a various experience and 
observation in different schools, while his broad common sense 
adapted what he learned to practical use. 

In his make-up there is more of the utile than of the poetical or 
fanciful, so that when he came out from the schools he was as well 
accoutered for the struggles of life as the most exacting could 
demand. 

In 185 1 he commenced the study of law with his brother, William 
M. Dickerman, at Coventry. This was fortunate for the student. 
It associated him with an interested and intimate friend so unlike 
himself, and whose stirring enthusiasm had a favorable influence on 
his more matter of fact brother. 

From that place he entered the office of Henry F. Prentiss at 
Derby Line, where enjoying the instruction and companionship of 
that bright man, he applied himself to the books with that tenacity 
of purpose which he has ever since exhibited in his work. 

He was admitted to the bar of Orleans county court June 25, 
1852, and practiced law at South Troy in 1S54-5. Erom there he 
removed to West Charleston. He was then t\vent)-two years of 
age, not above the medium in stature, lithe, trim and neat in 
appearance, an accomplished penman, thoroughly systematic, and 
possessing every practical element of education and none of the 
belle lettte type to interrupt the efficiency of his outfit. 

He had a lively appreciation of the brightness of life. He was 
quite sensitive to the influence of his surroundings. The nature 
and imjiortance of e\'erything around him seemed to be impresseil 



OKLKANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 1 83 

upon his mind. Unlike many who .seem to regard nothing in life 
as very important, this character is incapable of indifference. He 
is either pleased or disgusted with whatever he comes in contact. 
Here at West Charleston his character was formed, and this is a fit 
place for the camera, but the artist is wanting, and we must get 
along as best we may. 

It is fortunate for the character of any man if it may best be 
sketched by relating what he has done or is doing. Such I deem 
this character to be. 

When he fairly settled down to his life work and began to assume 
and develop distinct characteristics, his methodical and thorough 
style soon began to win the confidence of those around him, and 
more than that he began to mould business men into his ways, so 
that few lawyers have left more lasting or beneficial impressions on 
a clientage than he did there. The country was comparatively new, 
but much of the business of this immediate vicinity had grown old. 
The town had continued quiet but prosperous for many years, but 
about the time Dickerman went there it began to feel the influences 
of railroad enterprises. Equidistant from two of them, it began to 
stir itself to new enterprises, and the effects of la.x and careless 
business habits began to ve.x this people, and much of the young 
lawyer's time was occupied in arranging and closing out old differ- 
ences and complications, and regulating the confused affairs of his 
clients, invoking the aid of the courts when necessary. In doing 
this he won the unlimited confidence of his patrons. This work 
naturally placed him in many positions of responsibility, but when 
these trusts were tested first impressions in respect to them became 
permanent. He was too frugal to allow necessity to push him to 
extravagant-demands for his services, but they were regarded by 
him of too much consequence to be treated as worthless. 

His own financial matters managed accurate and just have made 
him fairly successful in respect to them. 

As an e.xpert accountant he could state and unravel the most 
intricate and irregular matters with much skill so as to reach defi- 
nite and satisfactory mathematical conclusions. In this work he 
grew in the esteem of those around him, and soon came to be 
regarded with a familiar and pleasant respect and confidence. 
There chanced to be halting there in that day a class of men much 
older in years than the subject of this sketch, but who arc nearly 



i84 BIOGRAPHY OF THE HAK 

all gone now. They regarded him with a sort of paternal affection. 

His blunt, frank speech, and spontaneity of feeling and expres- 
sion soon secured the good will of those somewhat old-fashioned 
but strong-minded and just men. 

His laughter and fun-loving modes were familiar in social hours, 
and enlivened the whole community, but never disturbed his settled 
convictions or his discipline in respect to integrity and seriousness 
in the realities of professional life. There never was a time in his 
most impatient modes when a bon mot would not be responded to 
by him with the merry laugh of a boy, and yet his jealousy of the 
honor and dignity of the profession is unbounded If I should 
attempt to state the most distinguishing or most marked features 
of his character I would use three words, viz : Honesty, indepen- 
dence and fidelity — to clients, friends, and in all his relations. He 
is hasty of speech, but his real friendships are not easily disturbed 
by differences nor moderated by time or absence. 

Whenever his words seem quick or intolerant or uncharitable, 
the inducement is a peculiar temperament which, like his wit, 
flashes almost before thought, but it is as " harmless as the idle 
winds," because there is no shade of malice in it. As I see him, 
though he is often impatiently indignant at things he deems wrong, 
there is not a particle of revenge or enmity in his being. 

It is true that he is independent to a degree almost bordering on 
stubbornness, but this results from his deep and settled convictions 
of right and wrong. As an advocate he is direct, logical and prac- 
tical — never diffusive or ornamental. He goes directly to his work 
with nothing in words or acts suggestive of personal considerations. 
He is too blunt and frank for art, and too independent for flattery. 

As state's attorney for Orleans county in 1858 and 1859, he per- 
formed the duties of that office with the same skill and care which 
he exercised in his private business, and which gave universal sat- 
isfaction. 

As a legislator in 1859 and 1S60, his opinions were clear and pos- 
itive. His speeches were short and comprehensive, with no attempt 
at brilliancy. Sometimes his irrepressible humor would manifest 
itself as if involuntary and coming unbidden. 

In i860 he and the able and eloquent Allen of Rutland, were 
very intimate friends. They ate at the same table, and were in 
hearty accord in respect to all things personal. An act appropri- 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VEKMONT. 1 85 

atin<; money to pay the Montpelier subscribers to a fund raised to 
rebuild the state house at that place was under discussion, and was 
bitterly opposed on the ground inter alia that the mohey was paid 
by the people of Montpelier for a consideration — a benefit which 
they had and were receiving ; like hotel-keepers who had paid lib- 
erally, and were receiving such returns in the patronage of mem- 
bers and others. To this argument Dickerman made a neat little 
speech in reijly, and when he came to this argument of Allen, he 
said in substance : " I was not aware, Mr. Speaker, that the putt- 
ing up at a hotel differed from any other business transaction in 
which the obligations and benefits are mutual ; and certainly so far 
as the gentleman from Rutland is concerned, if you sat at the table 
where I do, you would agree with me that he gets a quid pro quo 
for every cent he pays his landlord." 

An acquaintance with his accurate business methods pointed him 
out as a fit person for the office of bank commissioner, which jjosi- 
tion he held in 1862-3-4, fully meeting the expectations of his 
friends. 

In the house he was young and unassuming ; but when he came 
to the senate in 1869 and 1870 his position forced him to more 
active service, and he was soon one of the recognized leaders of 
that body. Special subjects, also, called him out. Among other 
things he was thoroughly aroused by the proposed legislation dis- 
posing of the Newbury Seminary property, in respect to which his 
settled convictions and positive and emphatic avowal of them were 
absolutely irresistible, and prevented the legislation first attempted. 
In his fidelity to his Alma Mater was displayed one of the most 
commendable characteristics in human nature. He stood by her 
with the affection of a determined child. 

As deputy collector of customs at Newport, from 1872 to [886, 
he conducted the business in accordance with a strict integrity and 
method which no one thinks to question. 

Take him all in all he has been in his sphere a thoroughly suc- 
cessful man, even beyond the expectations which country lawyers, 
dependent upon their own exertions, are wont to base on small 
beginnings. In the well established firms of Edwards & Dicker- 
man, and Edwards, Dickerman & Young, the former existing from 
April, 1864, to April, 1881, and the latter since then, he has con- 
tributed his share of patient work to build up an extcnsi\e practice. 



l86 lilOGRAI'HY OF THE BAR 

In August, 1854, Mr. Dickerman was married to Miss Hannah 
P. Bates. Fortunate in his domestic relations, which are united 
more closely by a bond of union in the person of a lovely daughter, 
I leave him to the expectations of the future which are incidental 
to meridianal life and to new achievements in his unfinished work, 
and with the hope that the half has not yet been accomplished. 



GEORGE TUCKER. 

THE subject of this sketch was born at Claremont, N. H., 
June 16, 1825, son of Samuel and Alma Rice Tucker. Mr. 
Tucker soon moved to Northfield, Vt., and engaged in farming. 
Young Tucker's youth was spent in attending the district school 
and in labor on the farm. Later he attended the Norwich Military 
University. He studied law at Montpelier, and was admitted to 
the bar of Washington county about 1S52, and soon went to Barton, 
Orleans county, where he formed a copartnership for the practice 
of the law with Gen. William W. Grout, since representative to 
congress from Vermont. This only continued about one year, as 
the war of the rebellion broke out, and he was one of the first to 
answer the call of the president for troops by volunteering, and 
was elected captain of Co. D, 4th Vermont Volunteer Infantry. He 
served in the army until compelled to resign on account of sickness. 

Afterwards he removed to Alexandria, Va. He lived in Virginia 
for a number of years, and assisted materially in reconstructing 
that state, and bringing its legislation into harmony with the gen- 
eral government. He was clerk of the house of representatives of 
Virginia for two terms, and was prosecuting attorney for Fairfax 
county for six years. He was once elected to congress, but was 
beaten in a contest for his seat, because of the prejudice against 
allowing any one to serve in that body, elected by the votes of the 
frecdmen. 

The Canon City Record of May 30, 1885, says of him : "He took 
an active part in all the reconstruction measures subsequent to the 
war, and was very popular with the honest and faithful union men 
of the South, and was much respected by all the political parties, 
because of his opposition to all dishonest government, and to that 
class of men who for mercenary purposes fastened themselves on to 
the governments of the South at the close of the war. 



ORI.KANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 1 8/ 

He advocated just and honest government both for the colored 
race and the white, and the education of all classes and their eleva- 
tion to all that was noble and good. 

He was employed for many years in investigating the claims of 
union men for indemnity for losses during the war, where fine 
opportunities for speculation off of the government were offered, 
yet he kept his hands entirely clean, and he received only his wages, 
and honestly discharged all his duties without a breath of suspicion 
against his integrity. He removed from Virginia to Washington 
City in i86g, and lived there until his removal to Colorado in i8So, 
and has lived since that time in Canon City in the county of Sag- 
uache, where he died May 22, 1885. 

He was engaged in his profession until his death, and was two 
years county attorney of that county. He had considerable mining 
property, and if it can be properly conserved it will be quite valu- 
able. 

Judge Tucker was scholarly and well studied in his profession. 
About him there was nothing of the pettifogger. He practiced law 
to get at the right. His aim was to know the law and apply it to 
the case in hand. He made no effort to cheat justice and acquit 
the guilty. As a citizen he loved the good and hated the evil. He 
labored diligently and actively in every enterprise for bettering the 
condition of his fellow-men. He was kind and charitable in all 
the relations of life, a kind and indulgent husband and father, a 
trusty friend, a worthy citizen, and a high-minded and honorable 
man." 



GEORGE BALDWIN. 

Tllh: subject of this sketch was born at St. Johnsbury, Vt., Jan- 
uary 22, 1830, and is the son of Jonathan Baldwin. His 
grandfather came from Rehoboth, Mass., and was one of the early 
settlers of St. Johnsbury. His mother's name was Sawyer. 

George was educated at the schools in St. Johnsbury and the 
institute at New Hampton, N. H. In 1S50 he commenced the 
study of the law with William Dickerman at Coventry, and after- 
wards read law with S. W. Slack at St. Johnsbury. He entered 
the Ballston, N. Y., Law School, graduating therefrom in May, 
1852, and ujjon his return to Vermont resumed the study of the 



lS8 BIOGRAPHY OF THE liAK. 

law in the office of Henry F. Prentiss at Derby Line, and was 
admitted to the bar of Orleans county at the June term, A. D. 
1853, and at once opened an office at Stockbridge, Vt., for the prac- 
tice of his profession, where he remained about two years. He 
then removed to Chilton, Calumet county, Wis., that being the 
county seat. In 1854 Mr. Baldwin was elected district attorney for 
his district, and re-elected in 1855. In 1865 he was elected a mem- 
ber of the assembly of Wisconsin, and in 1869 he was elected a 
member of the state senate, an office which he held two years. In 
1856 he commenced to invest what little money he could accumu- 
late from his practice, in real estate. This increased in amount 
and value until in 1877 he gave up the practice of law, and gave 
his whole time and attention to the real estate business. In Octo- 
ber, 1885, he removed to Appleton, Wis., it being more of a rail- 
road center, and would better accommodate him in the disposition 
of real estate in the northern part of the .state, also in Dakota and 
Minnesota. Mr. Baldwin has a partner in the business, the firm 
being Baldwin & Killen. 



JOHN COLBY. 

JOHN COLBY was born in Barre, Vt., September 19, 1S07, the 
son of Jonathan and Esther Colby. His education was obtained 
at the common schools and at Barre Academy. He afterwards 
attended the academy at Poultney, and Waterford, N. Y., where he 
graduated, and commenced studying law there, but having been 
called home on account of the sickness of his mother, he did not 
return. In 1831 he commenced the study of the law with Newell 
Kinsman of Barre, and was admitted to the bar of Washington 
county in 1835, and immediately entered upon practice at Wash- 
ington. He represented the town of Washington in the legislature 
in 1837-38-39, also 1841. In 1840 he was appointed register of 
probate for the district of Randolph, and in 1841 was elected by 
the legislature judge of probate for that district. In 1848 he went 
to Salisbury, Vt., where he engaged in the practice of the law, and 
was also engaged in farming. He represented Salisbury in the leg- 
islature in 1S50 and 185 1. In 1853 he removed to Craftsbury, 
where he practiced two years, and from there went to Glover, 
where he remained but a short time when he removed to Hartland. 



ORLF.AN'S COUNTY, VERMONT. 1 89 

He took an active and influential jiart in the affairs of his town and 
county. He represented Hartland in the legislature from 1858 to 
1861, inclusive, and from 1864 to 1866, inclusive, making thirteen 
years that he was a member of the house of representatives. In 
1S72 thinking to retire from active business, he removed to F'airlee, 
Vt., where he died March ig, 1875, holding at the time of his death 
the office of town clerk for Fairlee. He was twice a member of 
the constitutional convention. 

In 1837 he married Adaline M. Kneeland of White River Vil- 
lage, by whom he had four children — Clinton, now at VVaterbury, 
Conn., Hear)-, Jennie E., now Mrs. Cragin of Holyoke, Mass., Nel- 
lie L., now Mrs. Bickford of F'airlee, Vt. In politics he was an 
ardent rei^ublican, and was an earnest member of the Consrresra- 
tional church. 



DON ALONZO BARTLETT. 

THE subject of this sketch was born at Rrownington, Vt., Sep- 
tember 19, A. D. 1S29, the son of Seth and Asenath Higgins 
Bartlett. His father was a farmer, and moved with his young fam- 
ily to Coventry, Vt., when Orleans county was comparatively new. 
He was a man of sterling qualities, and of a persevering and ener- 
getic make-up. He gained a comfortable competence by industry 
and economy, besides helping his four sons who all became lawyers 
to such an education as his means and the schools of that section 
would admit of Don worked on his father's farm summers, and 
attended the district school winters until old enough to besrin 
school-teaching, thus earning something to enable him to continue 
his studies at more advanced schools, which he did, attending the 
academy at Brownington and also at Derby. 

He commenced the study of the law at Coventry in the office of 
William M, Dickerman, and afterward going to Irasburgh to teach, 
entered the office of Jessie Cooper, from whose office he was admit- 
ted to the Orleans county court at the June term, A. D. 1853, and 
immediately formed a copartnership with Mr. Cooper, who had then 
been in active and successful practice at Irasburgh some years. 

In October, 1854, he married Mary L. Cooper, a daughter of his 
partner, and in 1857 he emigrated to the territory of Kan.sas, and 
settled at Wyandotte in the practice of his profession, where he 

25 



igo liiociKAi'iiv or the dak 

died March 12, 1862. He had been appointed judge of probate for 
his district the year of his decease. He had by his industry, integ- 
rity and unblemished character, won an honorable reputation in the 
state of his adoption. He devoted much of his time, when not 
occupied in the duties of his profession, to the cause of education 
and religion, taking a prominent part in the organization of the 
First Congregational church of Wyandotte, and was one of its 
trustees at the time of his decease. His life was exemplary in all 
respects, and he had the esteem of his friends and the confitlence 
of those with whom he had business relations. 



CHARLES ROBINSON. 

THE Robinson family from time immemorial until within the 
last century, was particularly given to religion and preaching. 
The names of their children were taken from the bible, which good 
book to them was a code to be literally followed. 

The Rev. John Robinson, on account of his great piety and intol- 
erance, was chosen pastor of the " May-flower," but having died at 
Leyden before she sailed for America, was unable to get even a 
bird's-eye view of the Puritan's blarney stone at Plymouth. His 
son Isaac, however, came over in that immortal ship, and helped 
Capt. Miles Standish and others instruct the people in their several 
religious duties. 

Peter, son of Isaac, settled at Nantucket, Mass., where was born 
unto him another Peter, who settled at Windham, Conn. Here was 
born Jacob, son of Peter, 2d, in whose children became lost the 
bible names of the family. Jacob had three sons whom he named 
Eber, Tracy and Vine. Eber settled at Tolland, Conn., as a mer- 
chant, Tracy at Binghamton, N. Y., as a lawyer, and Vine at 
jirooklyn, Conn., as a farmer. Eber was an officer in the army dur- 
ing the revolutionary war, after which he took his family to Ver- 
mont, and settled in Holland, Orleans county. Fiber's second son, 
Charles, was born at Tolland, Conn., January 25, 1787. He was 
educated at Peacham Academy, studied law with William Ba.xter at 
Brownington, and settled in Barre, Washington county, where he 
practiced for many years. He married Nancy R., daughter of E. 
D. Wheeler, then the high sheriff of Washington county. 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VKKMONT. IQl 

Unto tliem was born on the first clay of November, A. D. 1816, 
a son, Charles Robinson, Jr., our subject. This Charles was edu- 
cated under Prof. Southmaid at the academy in Montpelier, and 
under Dr. Wilbur Fisk, president of the VVesleyan Academy at 
Wilbraham, Mass. After the death of his father in 1834, young 
Robinson traveled through the Southern states, and visited the 
East Indies and Western Australia. On his return to America in 
1844, he commenced the study of the law in the office of Hon. 
Timothy P. Redfield at Irasburgh in Orleans county, Vt., and in 
1847 finished his studies with Hon. Luke P. Poland at Morrisville, 
and was admitted to the bar in Lamoille county the same year. On 
Judge Poland's election as judge of the supreme court, Mr. Robin- 
son purchased his house and office at Morrisville, and succeeded to 
the law business of the judge. 

In 1853 he moved to Newport, Vt., having been appointed dep- 
uty collector by the Hon. D. A. Smalley, the collector of Vermont, 
and opened a law office at that place. 

In 1847 he married Philura L., second daughter of Dr. William 
Page of Waterville, Vt., by whom he had one son, Charles Homer, 
who now resides in New York. 

Mr. Robinson's practice in Orleans county was quite extensive, 
and for several years he was attorney for the Connecticut & Pas- 
sumpsic Railroad Company. 

During the first year of Andrew Johnson's term as president, he 
received the appointment of United States Consul at Quebec, 
where he remained about four years. After leaving Quebec he 
went to Boston, and accepted a prominent clerkship in the Boston 
custom house, and for the past eleven years has been a liquidating 
clerk in the naval office. 

Mr. Robinson's residence is in Medford, some three and one-half 
miles from the city, where he and Mrs. Robinson are enjoying 
themselves among their fruit and flowers. 



FREDERICK MOTT. 

FRKDP:RICK MOTT, a graduate of Brown University, was 
called in A. D. 185 1, to take charge of the Derby Literary 
and Theological Institute, situated at Derby Center, Vt., where he 
remained three years. During this time the success of the school 



ig2 ninCKAPHV OK TIIK HAK 

more than equaled the expectations of its most sanguine friends. 

At the close of his labors as principal he entered the office of 
John L. Edwards at Derby for the study of the law, and was admit- 
ted to the bar of Orleans county at the December term, 1856, and 
opened an office for a short time at Derby Line, but soon went 
West and settled in Iowa for the practice of his profession. He 
married Miss Emma Dean of Grafton, Vt., who was preceptress of 
the Derby Institute during the three years he was its principal. 
He now resides at Winterset, Iowa. 



AMASA BARTLETT. 

By Re\. ri.iNV H. White. 

AMASA BARTLETT, a son of Seth and Asenath (Higgins) 
Bartlett, was born in Bennington, Vt., May 8, 1835, ^^i^'^ in 
early childhood removed with his parents to Coventry, where he 
was brought up. He was one of four brothers who became law- 
yers. After obtaining a suita.ble academical education he com- 
menced the study of law with J. L. Edwards, Esq., of Derby, 
continued it with Hon. T. P. Redfield of Montpelier, and ended it 
with Jessie Cooper, Esq., of Irasburgh. He was admitted to tlie 
Orleans county bar at the June term, 1857, and in the following 
September removed to Kansas, where he established himself in 
practice at St. George. Though young in years and in the profes- 
sion, he was elected early in 1858 state's attorney for Pottawattomie 
county, and in the ensuing fall was elected to the Kansas legisla- 
ture from the representative district, consisting of that county and 
an adjoining one. In both these offices he acquitted himself cred- 
itably. In June, 1859, he returned to Vermont, and entered into 
partnership at Irasburgh with his former instructor, Jessie Cooper, 
Esq. This introduced him at once into a large and very miscella- 
neous business, in which he proved himself honest, capable and 
faithful. He continued in practice at Irasburgh about three years, 
in the meantime receiving his brother, Leavitt Bartlett, Esq., into 
partnership in place of Mr. Cooper. 

When the ninth regiment was called for he decided to abandon 
his practice and go into the service of the country. About the first 
of June, 1862, he received recruiting papers, and in the remarkably 



ORLEANS COUNTV, VERMONT. 1 93 

short space of nine working days he had recruited a company. 
Upon its organization he was elected captain. 

He shared the various fortunes of the ninth regiment, was with 
it at the siege of Suffollc and the surrender of Harper's Ferry, 
endured the vexations of the long inaction at Chicago as paroled 
prisoner, and went joyfuU}' to active service at Newbern. When 
the late Maj. Jarvis was killed he was deputed to accompany the 
remains to Vermont, and was soon after promoted to the vacant 
office. His last sickness was very short. He was unwell a few 
days prior to March 14, but was on duty till that day. He was 
then taken with brain fever, accompanied with convulsions, and 
survived only two days. His remains were conveyed to Coventry, 
where they were buried March 27, on which occasion a discourse 
on "The Christian Patriot" was delivered by the writer of this 
notice. Maj. Bartlett was eminently a Christian patriot. He did 
not leave his religion at home when he went into the army, as the 
manner of some is. It was a part of his daily life, as constant and 
conspicuous as the insignia of his rank. He looked after the moral 
and religious interests of his men as diligently as he cared for their 
health and discipline. His tent was the place of a regular prayer 
meeting, of which he was the conductor, and his faithful endeavor 
for the good of his men was not without valuable results. 



RINALDO A. BARKER. 

RIiNALUO A. BARKER was born in Glover, Vt, August 25, 
1830, and is the son of Joseph and Mary (Brittan) ]5arker. 
He received an academical education, and taught school several 
terms while pursuing his studies. In 1855 he commenced the 
study of law in the office of John P. Sartle at Barton, where he 
remained until December, 1857, when he was admitted to the bar 
of Orleans county. In 1858 he went to Delavern, Wis., where he 
remained one year. He then removed to Nebraska, where he 
practiced his profession about a year. In i860 he emigrated to 
Atchison, Kansas, and opened a law office, but on the breaking out 
of the rebellion in 1861, he enlisted as sergeant in Co. K, First 
Kansas Infantry. He soon afterwards was commissioned as sec- 
ond lieutenant of the same company. He was wounded in the bat- 



194 liinr.RAPHY of the bar 

tie of Wilson's Creek, Mo., after wliich he was promoted to be first 
lieutenant of the same company. In 1862 he resigned on account 
of disability and returned to Atchison, and again commenced the 
practice of his profession. He was elected city attorney in 1863, 
and re-elected in 1864. In the fall of 1864 he was elected secre- 
tary of state, and in January, 1865, removed to the capital, Topeka, 
and held that office until 1869, when he then engaged in the insur- 
ance business. In 1877 he removed to Chicago, where he has since 
resided. He was married December 9, 1862, to Julia A. Pierce, 
daughter of Horace Pierce of Barton, and has two children — Julia 
M. and Ellen M. 

HEALEY C. AKELEY. 

THP; subject of this sketch was born at Stowe, Vt., March 16, 
1836, the son of George and Electa Akeley. He obtained his 
education at the common schools and Barre Academy. He studied 
law with Dillingham & Durant at Waterbury, subsequently attended 
the law school at Poughkeepsie, N. Y., from which he graduated in 
1857 and returned to Vermont, and was admitted to the Orleans 
county bar at its December term, A. D. 1857; and at once opened 
an office at Greensboro where he remained until the fall of 1S58, 
when he removed to Grand Haven, Mich., where he now resides, 
engaged actively in the practice of the law, the firm being Akeley 
& McBride. In October, 1863, he enlisted as a private soldier, and 
in August, 1865, was mustered out as adjutant of the Second Mich- 
igan Cavalry. In 1866 he was appointed collector of customs for 
the district of Michigan, a position which he held with credit to 
himself and the country until i88o. Mr. Akeley has been for sev- 
eral years extensively engaged in buying and selling pine lands and 
other real estate, also extensively engaged in lumbering interests, 
by which he has become very wealthy. 



ALONZO D. BATES. 

By H. F. n. CakI'ENTER, ]-S(j. 

ALONZO D. BATES, the son of Lewis C. and Lucy Ann 
Bate-s, was born at Derby, Vt., November 30, 1827. He 
received his education at the common schools and at Derby Acad- 
emy. After leaving school he engaged in teaching in the states of 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. ig5 

Georgia and Alabama from the fall of 1848 until the fall of 1854, 
when he returned to Vermont, and applied himself to the .study of 
the law in the office of Hon. Jerry M. Dickerman at West Charles- 
ton, Vt., with whom he pursued the study of the law until June, 
1858, when he was admitted to the Orleans county bar. At this 
term of the (3rleans county court there were also admitted to the 
practice of the law the late Judge Benjamin H. Steele, William G. 
P. Bates, a brother of the subject of this article, who soon after- 
ward removed to the state of Illinois, where he has resided for many 
years, and Hon. Edward A. Stewart, now residing at Newport, Vt. 

He established himself in the practice of the law at the growing 
village of Newport, Vt., then better known as Lake Bridge, soon 
after his admission to the bar, and remainetl there until 1862, hav- 
ing during his residence at this place been twice elected to the 
office of state's attorney, and serving in that capacity for the years 
i860 and 1 86 1. He then removed to West Charleston, Vt., suc- 
ceeding Mr. Dickerman in the practiceof the law at that place, and 
remaining there until about 1872, when he removed to Derby, Vt., 
where he has since resided. 

A study of the law for three and one-half years, conscientiously 
])ursued, had undoubtedly well prepared him to assume the work of 
a practicing attorney. His practice, doubtless, was of that varied 
character which usually falls to the lot of a country practitioner, 
calling for a knowledge of the common law, the statute law, and 
that broader and more liberal code in the equity side of the court, 
so that the youthful practitioner must, to succeed, have in minil all 
the remedies, both legal and equitable. 

As a student and as a practicing lawyer he was, and is, uniipie 
and original in his expression and application, and sometimes seemed 
to carry the principle to an excess ; he seemed to believe in the 
individuality of himself, in this : That he followed after no copy, 
evidently believing it to be the duty of every one, and of himself in 
particular, to develop his own character without trying to fashion 
himself according to some other model ; hence he was and is always 
extremely slow and cautious in arriving at conclusions, though self- 
reliant and independent in forming opinions, yet, when the conclu- 
sion is arrived at and the opinion well matured, aggressive and pug- 
nacious in maintaining it, because the result of this mental process 
had been to reduce the ]5ro])osition to a moral certaint\-, like the 



ig6 BIOGRArilY OF THE I!.\K. 

demonstration of a mathematical problem. That he has laboriously 
and faithfully studied his profession and has an intelligent compre- 
hension of its principles, is shown in the manner in which he exam- 
ines and analyzes a legal question, so that if one obtain from him 
an opinion it is a safe and reliable one. 

This manner of thought and painstaking carefulness and caution 
has so fitted him in the preparation of a cause, and in the knowl- 
edge of the law governing it, and in the use of that acquired 
knowledge that he seems well fortified at all points, and among his 
contemporaries at the bar there are few, or none, who excel him in 
this particular ; hence he has been very successful in the prepara- 
tion and conduct of causes before referees, auditors, and before the 
supreme court. 

It is but fair, and not at all in derogation of his reputation as a 
lawyer, to say that his success lies more in the exposition and ajjjjli- 
cation of the law governing the cause than in an elaborate discus- 
sion of the facts connected therewith. 

That he has not succeeded as a mere jury advocate, in the popu- 
lar sense of the term, is doubtless attributable to an extremely ner- 
vous temperament, a natural' diflfidence, and that he had never 
sedulously cultivated the graces to the detriment of what he doubt- 
less believed to be the more solid attainments of a lawyer, and yet 
he always commands the attention of juries, becauseof the strength 
of his convictions, and no doubt if he had been possessed of a much 
greater confidence in himself his success in this direction would 
have been much greater. Besides what has been already written, 
this sketch would not be complete without a reference to his grim 
sense of humor, which in his dry, caustic manner, has lightened up 
many a time the tedium of the discussion of a dry legal topic, or in 
the transaction of court business, has convulsed the bench and bar 
with merriment, and whenever the exigencies of the time seem to 
demand it, he has a way of "setting out things," and particularly 
of "setting up" the attorney on the other side that will cause him 
to wince as if under a thumb-screw, and in this respect he is no 
respecter of persons, and is thoroughly impartial in his judgments. 
For the last few years Mr. Bates has paid more attention to agri- 
cultural pursuits than the practice of the law. 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. I97 

WILLIAM G. BATES. 

WILLIAM G. BATES, the son of Lewis C. and Lucy Ann 
Bates, was born at East Charleston, Vt., July i8, 1833. His 
education was obtained at the common school and academies of his 
native county. When not in school he spent the most of the time 
until his majority working as salesman or book-keeper for merchants 
at Rock Island, P. 0., and Montpelier, Vt. 

This life not being congenial to his taste, he deciced to study law, 
and in pursuance with that decision he entered the office of Jerry 
E. Dickerman at West Charleston, and was admitted to the bar of 
Orleans county at the June term, A. D. 1858, and in the spring of 
1859 went to Elkhart, Logan county. III, where he located for the 
practice of his profession. 

At this time the land and loan business was quite a share of 
every attorney's business in this new country, and was quite lucra- 
tive. After a short time Mr. Bates found this branch of the busi- 
ness was taking his whole time and attention, and this was true 
when the war of the rebellion broke out. Mr. Bates was among: the 
first to raise a company of soldiers of which he was a member, but 
upon examination was rejected for physical disability. Twice after 
this, during the war, he assisted in raising a company for different 
regiments in Illinois, and at both times was an.xious to take his 
place among them, but was rejected for the same cause as before. 
In October, 1883, he removed to Ba.xter Springs, Kansas, where he 
now resides. Mr. Bates has always been an ardent republican, hav- 
ing cast his first vote for J. C. Fremont in Springfield, 111., Abraham 
Lincoln going with him to the polls and vouching for him. Mr. 
Bates was married January i, 1 861, to Sophronia C. Lawrence, who 
deceased in 1867, leaving three boys. January 9, 1870, he was 
again married to Mrs. Mary B. Dunbar of Charleston, Vt., by whom 
he has one child, a daughter. 

BENJAMIN H. STEELE. 

BENJAMIN HINMAN STEELE was born in Stanstead, P. Q., 
February 6, 1837, eldest son of Sanford and Mary Hinman 
Steele. He never was very robust or hardy, "although enjoying 
ordinary health;" his make-u[j was of the slender, intellectual type. 
26 



igS BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR 

At six or seven years of age he began to show great mental activity ; 
from that time he was rather a silent, thoughtful boy, much by him- 
self, not seeking the society of others, yet drawing them to him by 
his peculiar manners. He was quite social, but only when sought. 
He had a clear analytical mind, and when a boy could state his 
propositions with remarkable clearness, skill and force, often elicit- 
ing expressions of surprise and admiration by the manner he would 
vanquish older debaters at the village lyceum and elsewhere. His 
primary education was obtained in the district school at Derby 
Line, and his course preparatory to entering college in the acad- 
emies of Stanstead and Derby. He was a ready scholar, and pro- 
gressed so rapidly as at the early age of fourteen to conduct as 
teacher an advanced winter school at Smith's Mills in Stanstead. 
After this he taught each winter for six years one at Derby, one in 
Troy, three in Concord, Mass., and one at Derby Line. When 
fourteen years of age he spent a few months at the college of St. 
Pierre, town of Cbambly, P. Q., for the study of the French lan- 
guage, and to the end of his life spoke it fluently. In 1853 young 
Steele entered Norwich University, thinking to graduate there, but 
at the end of two years closed his connection at Norwich and 
became a member at Dartmouth, entering the sophomore class of 
1854. His course at Dartmouth seemed to have been specially 
successful, for we learn that throughout he ranked with the fore- 
most of his class. At the age of twenty, in 1857, he graduated 
the equal, if not the acknowledged leader of his class in intellectual 
attainments. In the autumn of the same year he entered the ofifice 
of the late Hon. John P. Sartle of Barton, and there continued the 
study of law, which he had before this time, during his leisure time, 
pursued, doing double work as principal of Barton Academy and 
law student, but this burden was too much for him to bear, and he 
was soon prostrated with sickness, and had to suspend both school 
and the study of the law. On his recovery he went to Cambridge, 
Mass., with the purpose of pursuing his studies at the law school 
there. After remaining a while there he attended the supreme 
court as a spectator, and was by his friends urgently advised to 
apply for admisaion. The court was presided over by Judge Met- 
calf. He offered himself, and after a very thorough and lengthy 
examination he was recommended by the committee in the highest 
terms, and was then admitted to the Suffolk county bar, and at 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 1 99 

the age of twenty-one years returned to Vermont, and after 
spending some time in the office of Sanborn & Brooks, Sher- 
brooke, P. Q., in the study of Canadian law, he was at the July 
term, 1S58, admitted a member of the Orleans county bar, and 
at once began the practice ot his profession at Derby Line. In the 
practice of his profession he was eminently successful. He grew 
rapidly as a lawyer, and was universally popular with clients and 
the people. 

Hon. George N. Dale, in an address delivered at Derby Line, 
February 19, 1874, on the life and services of Judge Steele, said of 
him: "Having just attained his majority, he went to the bar of 
Orleans county, where the thoroughness of his attainments was to 
be tested at a bar which would compare favorably with any other in 
the state, among the members of which were Redfield, Colby, ]ul- 
wards, Dickerman, Prentiss and Cooper, and in the town with him 
the accomplished Sheafe- — the first two of whom were among the 
best, if not the best special pleaders in the state. He almost imme- 
diately took high rank, and soon became the peer of any lawyer in 
the state. 

His pleasing address and enthusiastic manners brought him friends 
and business, and when it came he did not give it a superficial 
glance and go to court with it as upon a venture, but he spared 
himself neither night nor day until he had become acquainted with 
the nature and details of the case, and had applied the law to it. 
He did not have a confused idea of the facts in the case, but had 
them in good arrangement and held them in an iron memory. 
Located as he was, his command of the French language was of 
immense value to him. He would sit for hours poring over laws in 
that language, drinking from the fountain head those principles and 
the history of their origin, which he was daily applying to his cases. 
He could listen to the story of a poor French client who had in 
vain attempted to tell his wrongs to the rest of us, and who had 
till then been shut out from our laws by that veil between the two 
languages, which seemed to envelop his humble business relations 
in hopeless darkness. 

He could thus instantly pour a flood ot light into the mind of the 
poor client. The expression of satisfaction on the face of the coun- 
sel, and of gratitude from the client, was a picture worth years of 
toil to be able to produce. 



200 BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR 

He had a very influential presence and great personal influence. 
If the current was against him in any trial, he had great power in 
resisting it and turning it to his favor, so that if he would, if not 
convinced, al least, secure a respectful hearing. In speaking he did 
not study ornament so much as clearness and force, but his style 
was naturally elegant and polished. He never indulged in- low bil- 
lingsgate, but if called upon to meet it he would do it with a keen 
sarcasm that was effectual as it was healthy, but always free from 
vulgarity. To say that he was not bitter and severe would not be 
true, but it was never expressed in low or vulgar language. 

He never attempted the grand in his arguments, but very fre- 
quently he would involuntarily indulge in passages of absolute sub- 
limity. His purpose seemed to be to go to his work in the most 
practical, plain, yet forcible and effectual manner. He would illus- 
trate his points with sharp sallies of wit, but he rarely indulged in 
anecdotes. This resulted from no want of good humor, nor from a 
want of capacity to relate them, for away from court he would pro- 
voke constant mirth and laughter for hours by his inimitable man- 
ner of relating them, almost always selecting those illustrating the 
men and times just past — men whose style and manners he did not 
ridicule, but whom he could imitate with wonderful accuracy. He 
was far from being wilful, but when he formed his opinions he 
would defend them with a skill and courage which were admirable. 
His character was positive. 

He would defend propositions he deemed correct with a true 
spirit and an immense resource of reasons and illustrations, always 
impressing his audience with his originality. On one occasion a 
well-informed stranger sat in the rear while he was addresring the 
jury. He stated three or four propositions with marked clearness 
and force, and urged his reasons for their adoption, and the stranger 
remarked, ' How exhaustive and clear! He has stated all that a 
man can in relation to that part of his case.' But the pause was 
over, and the advocate was declaring ' Gentlemen, this would indeed 
seem sufficient and conclusive, but I have a reason more potent 
than all this.' 

The surprise he had shrewdly created by seeming to exhaust the 
subject and then suddenly springing in the important part, riveted 
the attention of the court, jury and bar to see what it could be. 
He then proceeded to state the most important proposition by far 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VEKMONT. 20I 

in the case, and to fortify it by an ingenious arrangement of rea- 
sons and arguments, so that when he had concluded his argument 
on that branch of the case, his new-born admirer exclaimed, 'What 
a fertile brain! immense resources! He does not look like it, 
but how he does talk ! ' 

He appealed to the reason of the jury — seldom to their passions 
or sympathy. Yet, when it became material, he could describe the 
weakness of poverty with marked success. On one occasion it 
was urged that his client, an old man, ought to understand, and 
did understand and consent to a most unconscionable agreement. 
After describing his client's incapacity from age in a most touch- 
ing manner, he added: 'And now, gentlemen, to say that this 
man, whose foot falls so slow and uncertain on the ground, and to 
whose ear the sounds of earth are so far off, whose nerves are 
unstrung by the oppressions of the plaintiff (his own son), whose 
intellect is clouded, and whose sight is growing dim — to say that 
he .shall be entombed in his old age in such a contract, is harsh 
indeed, yes, intolerable.' I refer to this with no hope of reproduc- 
ing the effect, but only to show the style. He was never idle. As 
he grew older in practice he became more social. He would read 
his books or talk with a friend until near morning, about his cases, 
the history and the practice of the law, the court-room, and the 
names and characters of those who had made courts revered, use- 
ful and interesting. 

He would listen to and develop in his mind his client's case with 
a zest and thoroughness that was not engendered by passion or 
hope of gain for the rich, and the poor received like treatment. 
He would so thoroughly prepare the law propositions bearing on 
his case that when in court he applied them, and he would do it 
with masterly analysis and a clear recollection of cases. Thus did 
he secure the confidence of the court, and commend his case to 
most favorable consideration." 

Mr. Steele was not an active politician in his earlier years, only 
having held the office of postmaster at Derby Line during President 
Lincoln's administration, until he was appointed judge of the su- 
preme court. He, however, did some political service in the inter- 
est of his friends. In 1864 when Hon. Portus Baxter received his 
second nomination for congress, it was arranged that Benjamin H. 
Steele should present the name of his friend and townsman for 



202 DIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR 

renomination. The convention was a mass convention, and was 
large and noisy with enthusiasm. Young Steele's words soon com- 
manded attention, and his speech is remembered by all who heard 
it, and is often reverted to as a model of brevity, pure English and 
eloquence. In November, 1865, he was appointed by Gov. Dilling- 
ham to the supreme court bench, to fill the vacancy caused by the 
appointment of Judge Luke P. Poland to a place in the United 
States Senate, made vacant by the death of Senator Collamer. 

Only twenty-eight years of age, lie was the youngest man ever 
appointed to the bench of Vermont. He entered upon the duties 
of the office amid the anxiety of his friends for that reason, but it 
was soon allayed. He gave proof at once of his fitness for the 
high position. What many other and older men have obtained by 
hard study and experience, he seemed to have by intuition. His 
manner was always dignified and kindly. " Perhaps if the Vermont 
bench ever knew a man who laid justice to the line and judgment 
to the plummet " it was Judge Steele. His "charges" were excel- 
lent samples of clearness, brevity and method. His supreme court 
opinions are among the clearest and ablest in our Vermont reports. 
He held the position of judge until 1870, when much to the regret 
of all he declined a re-election. During his judgeship he removed 
to St. Johnsbury, and on his retirement from the bench he removed 
to Hartland, where his home was at the time of his decease. In 
1876 he was appointed a member of the state board of education, of 
which he was a valuable and influential member. In 1872 he was 
chosen by the legislature one of the trustees of the state library. 
In the presidential campaign of 1872 he took an active and efficient 
part. He was elected one of the delegates at large to the national 
republican convention at Philadelphia. At that convention he was 
appointed one of the committee on resolutions, greatly aiding in 
preparing the platform of principles, several of the most important 
declarations having been written by him and adopted by the con- 
vention without change. After the convention he entered zealously 
into the canvass, speaking and laboring until Grant and Wilson 
were elected. Urged by his numerous friends, he consented to 
become a candidate for the congressional nomination in the second 
district against Judge Poland. The contest was close and exciting, 
Judge Steele being defeated by a bare majority in the convention. 
His defeat did not diminish his labors, but he went into New 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 2O3 

Hampshire and labored untiringly and effectively until the close of 
the presidential campaign. Always of slender constitution, and 
troubled considerably with a serious catarrhal difficulty, constant 
speaking" brought on bronchial inflammation. In March he went 
to New York for medical treatment, and for a time was thought to 
be improving. But growing worse, in May he returned home to 
Hartland, and in a few weeks started for Minnesota, hoping that 
climate might benefit him. He stopped at Fairbault, and for a time 
felt he was improving, but he soon had several attacks of hemor- 
rhage, and died on Sunday, July 13, 1873. Judge Steele was mar- 
ried in 1 861 to Martha F. Summer of Hartland, who with two 
children, a daughter Mary aged ten, and a son David aged two, at 
the time of his decease, survive him. His funeral was largely 
attended b)- the prominent men of the state. 



EDWARD A. STEWART. 

EDWARD A. STEWART was born in Brownington, Vt., June 
' 13, 1834. His father, the late Thomas C. Stewart, was one of 
the prominent and influential business men of Brownington, spend- 
ing almost his entire life and resting in death in that town, as was 
also his grandfather, Amherst Stewart, one of the pioneers of the 
town, having settled there as early as 1802. His mother was Emily 
Brigham, daughter of Silas Brigham, also a pioneer of the town. 
Judge Stewart's early life was spent working in his father's store 
and on the farm, and attending the school of his native district, 
Brownington Academy and Derby Academy, where his education 
was obtained. When he was twenty years of age, desirous of see- 
ing something of the world, and an.xious to get away from home as 
most boys are early in life, he went to Boston and obtained employ- 
ment in the Quincy market. He was soon convinced that the goal 
of life for him was far from attained even if he was in the city of 
Boston. Hence at the end of twenty months he returned home 
and entered the office of John L. Edwards at Derby for the study 
of the law, and was admitted to the bar of Orleans county at the 
June term, A. D. 1858, and at once formed a copartnership with 
Mr. Edwards, and practiced law at Derby until 1862, under the 
firm name of Edwards & Stewart. After this he continued alone 



204 BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR. 

in the practice of the law until 1865, when he was elected judge of 
probate for the district of Orleans, which office he acceptably held 
until 1876. Judge Stewart was assistant clerk of the Vermont 
house of representatives during the years i860 and 1861, and clerk 
of the house for 1862 and 1863. In January, 1872, Judge Stewart 
formed a copartnership with D. M. Camp of Newport, and they 
published the Express and Standard at that place until April, 1881, 
when this relation was dissolved, and Mr. Camp continued the pub- 
lishing of the paper. From that time to the present Judge Stewart 
has been engaged in the insurance business and the settlement of 
estates, for which he is peculiarly adapted, and has been very suc- 
cessful. 

As a lawyer Judge Stewart had acquired by close attention to 
business, a good degree of success when he was elected judge. As 
a judge he was always self-contained, of patient and courteous 
bearing with all those who have grievances to bring before the 
judge of probate. He discharged the duties of his office without 
ostentation, and giving general satisfaction. As a man and citizen 
he is always affable and genial, possessing that plain style and mat- 
ter of fact directness of purpose, and that modest and unobtrusive 
manner to be expected in one who, like him, has an utter contempt 
for all shams and mere pretense. He is a member of the Newport 
Congregational church, for which he is a constant and zealous 
worker. He was married in i860 to Lucy Jane Kelley, and they 
have had four children, two of whom are still living — Emma Lydia 
and Kate Maria. 

WILLIAM W. GROUT. 

By GEORGE H. BI.AKE. 

WILLIAM WALLACE GROUT was born in Compton, Prov- 
ince of Quebec, May 24, 1836. His ancestry is traced back 
in New England to as early a period as 1640, and the record shows 
that in each generation the Grouts were distinguished for push, 
strong common sense and integrity. They held various offices, and 
occupied prominent places in their different spheres of life. From 
Massachusetts they found their way into New Hampshire, as the 
new country opened up, and Theophilus, grandfather of William 
W., came to Vermont in 1792 and settled in Kirby. Josiah, father 




^c/S^^ 



'CJCfX^ 




ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 205 

of William W., was born in Kirby and resided there most of his 
life, though he spent a few years in Canada. William W. was the 
second son in a family of ten ; his mother was Sophronia Ayer, an 
intelligent, estimable lady of Scotch-Irish descent, whose marked 
characteristics were transmitted to her children. 

William W. Grout, like other Vermont boys, had a fair opportu- 
nity to attend the common schools, but was ambitious to obtain an 
education, and hoped to enter one of the professions. He spent 
his leisure hours in reading and study, and later procured a good 
academic education. Having decided upon the profession of the 
law, he entered the law school at Poughkeepsie, N. Y., where he 
graduated in 1857. Returning from school, he entered the law 
office of Hon. Thomas Bartlett of Lyndon, to spend a few months 
there, and was admitted to the bar in Caledonia county in Decem- 
ber of the same year. The next year he went to Barton and formed 
a copartnership with Geo. Tucker, Esq. The town at that time was the 
terminus of the railroad and the business center of the county. 
Several lawyers resided there, and the bar of the county was hon- 
ored by many members then and afterwards distinguished. The 
young lawyer was pitted against older lawyers than himself in his 
own town, and against John P. Sartle, an antagonist who was very 
jealous of his own standing, and imperious in his bearing and con- 
duct. Local litigation soon gave young Grout opportunity to show 
what material he was made of, and many well remember the fierce 
battles that were fought in justice courts when Grout and Sartle 
were engaged as counsel. Here Mr. Grout began to display that 
good common sense, unfaltering courage, and indomitable perse- 
verance which have ever been the elements of his success. His 
practice in the local courts increased, and he soon took respectable 
standing at the bar, both in Orleans and Caledonia counties. 

In 1862 he was nominated for state's attorney by the republicans 
of his county, but he declined the nomination, having decided to 
enter the army. He recruited a company in Barton, and at its 
organization was chosen cai)tain. When the line officers met to 
choose field officers, Capt. Grout was chosen lieutenant-colonel of 
the t 5th Vermont Regiment. The regiment was immediately sent 
to Virginia, and did much marching and picket duty through the 
winter, camped and tramped all through the guerilla country, and 
participated in the Gettysburgh campaign ; yet it was singularly 
27 



2o6 lUtHiKAniv OK riiv: 1!.\k 

fortunate in cscapini; the perils ot battle, (.'ol. Gimit uKule an 
aotive and cttieient otVicer, ami was foremost in seeking the place 
of danger ; he won the confiilence of the officers and the esteem of 
the rank and tile of his regiment. The delicate health of his wife for- 
bade that he remain longer from home, and he was mustered out with 
the regiment in August, 1863, and returned homo to resume the prac- 
tice of the law. The next fall the legislature created a state mili- 
tia, and Col. (.irout was chosen brigadier-general. During the same 
year he was elected state's attorney, and held the otVice two years. 
The somewhat celebrated Raxter-Hoyt campaign for member of 
congress occurred at this time, and Gen. Grout, having espoused 
the cause of Mr. Hoyt. made some enemies, who fought him in pol- 
itics long afterwards. He was elected to the house of representa- 
tives in 1868, and his town paid him the high compliment of sending 
him to the legislature three successive years. His career in the 
legislature was marked by a faithful attention to business, a careful 
regard for the interest of the common people, and a war against 
the Shvlocks who were trving to raise the rate of legal interest 
above six per cent, \\c was chosen a delegate to the national con- 
vention which first nominated (ien. luant for the presidency. In 
iS~4 licn. Grout was again sent to the lower iiouse of the legisla- 
ture, and in 1876 he was chosen to the senate, where he was made 
president />n> trw of that body. Two years later, after a very 
sharp political canvass, he was nominated for Representative to 
Congress over liradley Harlow. The nomination was bolted by 
Mr. Barlow. A fusion was made with grcenbackers and democrats ; 
money was freely used in the campaign, and Gen. Grout was 
defeated. The injustice of the act was felt all through the state, 
and the refluent wave of favor was such that in 1 880 both friends 
and former political enemies made haste to right the wrong, and he 
not only received an almost unanimous nomination, but a triumph- 
ant election to the Forty-seventh Congress. Asa first-term member 
in the house of representatives he began his work under disadvan- 
tages, but the Congressional Record shows that he was neither an itlle 
nor a silent member. Among the most important measures which he 
advocated in this congress may be mentioned the creation of a cab- 
inet officer for the head of the agricultural department, the Geneva 
Award, the American shipping bill, the North Dakota Territory 
bill, and a bill on French spoliations. During the full term of his 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 207 

congressional sen'ice he was very faithful to duty, doing a great 
amount of work, both for the country and his constituents. Just 
at the close of his work at this time in congress, he was prostrated 
by a very severe illness which threatened life for some days, and 
made him unfit for labf^r several months afterward. The new 
apportionment had diminished the number of representatives in 
Vermont to two, and the state had been divided by legislative act 
into two districts, by a line running along the Green Mountains. 
This brought Gen. Grout into the .second district, and it come to 
be felt that the interests of the district and the state demanded 
that he be returned to Washington from this district. At the time 
the caucuses were held before the district convention, Gen, Grout 
was busy in Washington, and a few days later prostrate with sick- 
ness, so that his canvass was not looked after, and the friends of 
Judge Poland taking advantage of the situation, carried a majority 
of the primary meetings and the convention. Many were di.s.sati<»- 
fied with the result, and there was a strong di.spo.sition to bolt the 
nomination. Gen. Grout discountenanced the move, and counseled 
his friends to support the nominee. At the September election a 
large number of votes were cast for Gen. Grout, but Judge Poland 
won, and his work in congre.ss was very creditable to the state and 
to himself. Previous to the time of the district convention in 1884 
Judge Poland took himself out of the canvass, and the names of 
Gen. Grout, Col. G. W. Hooker, and William P. Dillingham were 
most prominently mentioned for member of congress. Gen. Grout 
was successful in the convention, and was elected by a vote said 
to have been the largest given to any congressman chosen from 
the state in many years. 

At this time Gen. Grout is serving his second term in congress ; 
he has been in his place every day of the session, and has won no 
little credit for himself and the state by his faithful attention to 
duty. Among the most notable speeches he ha,s made are those 
on the Fitz John Porter and the Oleomargarine bills. Should the 
people again decide to return him to congress, we see no reason 
why his usefulness and influence may not increase as his opportu- 
nities are extended. 

Gen. Grout's course in congress has been in keeping with his 
character ; he has been very faithful to the interests of his constit- 
uents and his friends ; he has been ambitious to do well whatever 



2o8 BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR 

he has undertaken to do, and has succeeded. In this exalted and 
difficult sphere, Gen. Grout has been able as in all places where he 
has been placed, to exceed the expectation of his friends and to 
disappoint his rivals. 

While Gen. Grout has been largely engaged in political affairs, 
he has all the while kept up a good law practice, and has been 
engaged in many important civil and criminal suits. Prominent 
among them were the cases of Hayden and Turner indicted for 
murder, and Moore for forgery. Judge Powers, before whom the 
Hayden case was tried, remarked to the writer that Gen. Grout's 
effort before the jury was one of the most able arguments he ever 
heard. Turner was acquitted, and Moore was released on his own 
bail, after a disagreement of the jury. Gen. Grout, without dispar- 
agement to other counsel, was the chief man on the defense in 
these important cases. It is a somewhat singular circumstance 
that in a large practice of several years Gen. Grout only lost a 
single case, where he brought the suit, prepared and tried the 
case. Whenever he has put himself into a case, he has man- 
aged it with admirable skill and with great wisdom. As an advo- 
cate he is pleasing, persuasive and able ; he seeks to convince a 
jury by plain and vigorous arguments, caring more to present his 
case clearly by simple language, than to charm the ear with smooth 
and elegant phrases. He is intuitively familiar with the principles 
of justice, and seeks to attain what is right, regardless of the tech- 
nicalities and the intricacies of law. Had he concentrated his 
thoughts and his energies upon the law alone, few lawyers would 
have been his superior. 

P^or many years Gen. Grout has been actively engaged in agricul- 
tural matters. He purchased the pld Grout homestead in Caledonia 
county, hired his brother-in-law, Capt. Ford, as manager, and com- 
menced both practical and scientific farming. He took the farm in 
a run-down condition, but at once entered upon the work of recla- 
mation. He erected large barns — the largest in the vicinity, he 
built silos, purchased thoroughbred stock, laid miles of underdrain- 
ing, and resorted to approved methods of labor without and within. 
He has been successful, and has far more than attained that most 
desirable thing which Justin S. Morrill once declared to be worthy 
the highest aim of the Vermont farmer — " the raising of two blades 
of grass in the place of one." His farm demonstrates the fact that 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 2(X) 

intelligent farming can be successful and profitable in Vermont. 

Gen. Grout married Loraine M. Smith of Glover in i860. She 
was a woman of most lovely and amiable disposition, and was highly 
esteemed for her intelligence and womanly virtues. The union was 
a most happy one. Two children were born as the fruits of the 
marriage, but they passed away early, and the mother, stricken and 
bereft, survived them but a brief time, and died in 1868. The loss 
to the husband was irreparable, and he has felt that no other could 
fill the place of his early love. He remains single, and his home in 
Barton is in charge of his sister, Victoria Grout. 

As a citizen Gen. Grout endears himself to his community by his 
charity, honesty, and public spirit. The poor always find in him a 
friend ; he contributes largely to all churches, and his gifts to 
schools and other institutions have been large. His word is truth 
and his honor is unquestioned. He is ever ready to assist in any 
enterprise that promises to be a public benefit. In religious mat- 
ters he is liberal, but his liberality does not tolerate anything of 
infidelity, or sanction aught but the cardinal principles of Bible 
religion. He is a man who grows in the esteem as acquaintance 
and association become more intimate. Industrious, persistent, 
able, honest, courageous and ambitious. Gen. Grout is made of that 
stuff and of those elements which always succeed, and which 
bespeak for the future, should his life be spared, a career that will 
be an honor to his name, his profession and his state. 



WILLIAM Deforest wilson. 

WILLIAM Deforest wilson, only son of the late 
Hon. W. C. and Clarissa A. Wilson, was born at Bakers- 
field, Vt., October 5, 1836. 

He received his education at the Bakersfield Academy and Uni- 
versity of Vermont ; read law with his father, whose reputation as 
a legal preceptor was unsurpassed, and with his natural aptitude 
for the profession and the thorough drill received from Judge Wil- 
son, came to the bar well equipped, and was admitted in Franklin 
county at the June term, 1857. Admission to the supreme court 
and the United States district and circuit courts followed in order. 

He was married in 1855 to Lucretia D. Graves, and by this union 



2IO BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR 

three children have been born to them, two of whom, William 
DeForest, Jr., and Marion L., are now living to make his pleasant 
home, where generous hospitality is dispensed, pleasanter, and to 
add to the domestic happiness which is one of the chief delights of 
his life. 

Soon after his admission to the bar he opened an office at South 
Troy, Vt., and by his industry and ability established a remunera 
five practice, remaining there until February, 1867. 

In i860 he was Deputy United States Marshal, and assisted in 
taking the census of that year. In 1867 he removed to St. Albans^ 
where he formed a law partnership with Col. R. C. Benton, which 
continued until November, 1869, when it was dissolved by reason 
of Mr. Wilson's intentions of going West, but which were finally 
reconsidered, and he remained in practice alone until January i, 
1874, when he formed a partnership with Alfred A. Hall, which 
has since continued under the name of Wilson & Hall. 

His practice has been large for a country town, having been 
engaged in many of the most important cases in that county during 
the last decade, and the business of the firm extending into adjoin- 
ing counties, in which he has had marked success. 

Untrammeled by political ambition or other business interests, 
he has faithfully and studiously devoted himself to his profession. 

Of pleasing address, he excels as a jury advocate. He is aggress- 
ive, industrious, sanguine and fearless, and may well congratulate 
himself upon having chosen a profession for which he was so well 
adapted by nature, and in which he has labored singly for success, 
winning for himself the best possible encomium, "a good lawyer." 



L 



LEAVITT BARTLETT. 

By Rev. E. p. Wii.I). 

EAVITT BARTLETT was born August 14, 1837, in Cov- 
entry. His parents were Seth and Asenath (Higgins) Bart- 
lett, and he was the fourth son who entered the legal profession. 
He studied law with Jesse Cooper of Irasburgh, and was admitted 
to the Orleans county bar in June, 1859. From that time till 1863 
he practiced law at Irasburgh. Then he removed to Coventry. 
Having become a Christian, he was strongly moved to enter the 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 2 I I 

gospel ministry. With the candor and promptness which always 
characterized him, he soon decided the question, and in October, 
1863, entered Bangor Theological Seminary. He was a faithful 
student and a genial companion. He was quick in his apprehension 
of the truth, strong in maintaining it, and earnest in presenting it. 
He finished his seminary course in the summer of 1865, wa.s 
ordained at Bangor, July 27 of that year, and went immediately to 
the West to do pioneer work in the organizing of churches. Kan- 
sas City had then just begun its marvelous career of growth, and 
thither Mr. Bartlett went under the direction of the American 
Home Missionary Society to gather a church. The First Congre- 
gational church of that city owes its existence and much of its 
prosperity to him. He labored there till July, 1867, when he 
returned to Vermont on account of impaired health. The next 
spring he began to preach at North Bennington, Vt., where a 
church was soon organized, of which he took the pastoral charge. 
In 1870, he went to Jersey City, where he remained a year, minis- 
tering to another new church. In September, i87i,hewas installed 
pastor of the First Congregational church in Yarmouth, Me. But 
though his work in that place was useful and he was much belovetl 
by his people, his heart was always turning back to the new fields 
at the West. In August, 1873, he resigned his pastorate and went 
to Kansas City. For nearly four years he supplied the pulpit of 
the church at Olathe, Kan., though engaged in business a part of 
the time. He continued in business in Kansas City till June, 1883. 
During these years he preached much of the time on the Sabbath, 
supplying the pulpits of destitute churches, and laboring in the 
neglected districts of the city and neighboring villages. At length, 
worn out by hard work, and realizing the danger of prostration by 
disease, he left all business and went with his family to Colorado 
for a season of absolute rest. This was in July, 1883. Recuper- 
ated somewhat after a few weeks, he desired to be at work again. 
The Home Missionary Society appreciating the value of his knowl- 
edge and experience, appointed him superintendent of home mis- 
sions for New Mexico and Arizona, with his office at Albuquerque. 
He took up this arduous labor with characteristic energy and faith. 
His family returned to Springfield, Mo., where his daughters were 
being educated at Drury College. But it was for only a few months 
that Mr. Bartlett was able to continue in the work. A week of 



212 BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR. 

unusually severe labor in preaching at a mining village high among 
the mountains brought on an attack of pneumonia. From this he 
partially recovered and went to Yuma, Ariz., to recruit further. 
After a few weeks of improvement he went on to San Bernardino, 
Cal. But it was the rainy season, and the climate proved too hard 
for him. He rapidly grew worse, and became unable to be moved. 
His wife was sent for, who, after being delayed four days at Yuma 
by the heavy rains, reached him just in season to witness his death. 
He died at the house of Rev. J. T. Ford in San Bernardino, March 
g, 1884. His remains were brought back to Kansas City, and 
interred in the cemetery at Wyandotte, Kan., beside those of his 
brother Alonzo. 

He was married November 29, 1865, to Miss Emily J. Scales, 
daughter of Rev. William Scales, formerly of Lyndon, Vt. She, 
with two daughters, sur\'ives him. 

Mr. Bartlett was a man of rare integrity of heart, strength of 
purpose, and cheerfulness of temperament. He could see through 
a thing with a quickness which seemed almost intuitional. His 
views of duty were singularly firm. A decision once made left no 
opportunity for regret. His hopefulness was great. He seemed 
to be always living for the future in doing present work. And his 
manner of dealing with men was pleasant and winning. During 
the short period of his law practice in Orleans county he made 
many friends who will not cease to cherish his memory very 
warmly. But his life work was done after he entered the ministry, 
and in this he left an influence which must be felt for ages. 



ENOCH II. BARTLETT. 

Rev. Pliny H. White in Vermont Historical Magazine. 

THE subject of this biography was the son of Seth and Ase- 
nath (Higgins) Bartlett, and a brother of Don A., Amasa, 
and Leavitt Bartlett, all members of the bar of Orleans county. 
He was born in Bennington, Vt., April 20, 1833, but while he was 
quite young his father moved to Coventry, Vt. He spent his 
minority, except a few terms at Derby Academy, on his father's 
farm. Upon coming of age he went to Peoria, III, where he spent 
a year as clerk in a store ; then returning to Vermont he attended 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 2I3 

the academy at Morrisville two years, after which he entered upon 
the study of the law with Henry H. Frost, Esq., of Coventry. He 
was admitted to the Orleans county bar at the December term, 
1859, and immediately took the office and business of Mr. P'rost, 
who had died some months before. 

He was actively and successfully engaged in business when the 
war broke out, but he could do no business after that. His whole 
soul seemed to be absorbed in thoughts of his country, and of 
the duty he owed to it. A recruiting office was soon opened at 
Coventry, and he was one of the first to enlist, and one of the most 
active to induce others to do the same. It was a great disappoint- 
ment to him that the company was not fitted in season to enter 
either the first or second regiment. It was at length organized as 
Co. B. of the third regiment, May 24, 1861, and he was elected 
first lieutenant. He was promoted to the captaincy September 22, 
1862. He participated in all the fatiguing marches and desperate 
fighting in which the third regiment was engaged, having been in 
the thickest of the fight at Lee's Mills, Williamsburgh, the seven 
days before Richmond, Antietam, Fredericksburgh, Chancellors- 
ville, and other bloody fields. 

He fell at last in the Wilderness, May 3, 1864, while gallantly 
leading his company against the rebels, and received a soldier's 
burial on the spot where he fell. 



WALTER D. CRANE. 

WALTER D. CRANE was born at Bridport, Addison coun- 
ty, Vt., on the 14th day of September, 1827. He was the 
son of Chilion and Cynthia (Holman) Crane. His father was of 
German-Irish descent, and by occupation a farmer, a calling which 
has given birth in New England to more sturdy men than all oth- 
ers put together. He was highly esteemed among his neighbors 
as a man of probity and fair dealing ; and that he united with these 
qualities the virtues of thrift and industry is amply shown by the 
fact that, while laying by a competency for old age, he reared a 
family of twelve children. Of these twelve, eleven sons and one 
daughter, Walter was the third. His early history was like that of 
most boys in his position. Work on the farm was diversified with 
28 



214 BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR 

attendance upon the public school in proportions varying with the 
necessities of the season and the age of the boy. Like most of 
his brother farmers, however, Chilion Crane seems to have felt the 
importance of giving his children a competent education, and when 
Walter had exhausted the capacities of the district school, it was 
determined that he should go to the academy. The institution at 
Bakersfield, Franklin county, was the one selected, and here it was 
that young Crane completed his education so far as schools had to 
do with it. Owing to the circumstances of his father, which were 
at that time less prosperous than in after years, while a large fam- 
ily demanded his support, Walter, after leaving home, was forced 
to rely mainly upon his own exertions. Being thus obliged to teach 
one-half the time in order that he might pursue his own studies the 
other half, a considerable period was necessarily occupied in com- 
pleting the curriculum of the academy, so that he was some twenty- 
three years of age when he left it. This may have been one reason 
why Mr. Crane never attempted a collegiate course, although at 
that time such a course was not considered as by any means indis- 
pensable in a candidate for one of the learned professions even, and 
it may be doubted whether in fact the habits of independence and 
self-reliance thus early engendered were not of infinitely more 
value to him in subsequent life than fotir years of classical study 
could have been. 

On leaving school young Crane confronted the every-day ques- 
tion, what to do for a living. Those who know him now will be 
readily persuaded that the drudgery of the plow never held out any 
special inducement to him, nor will they be surprised that he turned 
his back upon the honorable calling of his father and became a 
merchant. He located at East Franklin, Vt., in 185 1, where he 
also held the office of postmaster. This occupation did not, how- 
ever, prove as congenial as he had anticipated, and after a four 
years' experience he threw it up, and began the study of the law 
with Jasper Rand, who was then located at Berkshire. He was 
admitted to practice at the September term of the Franklin county 
court, 1859. Having been appointed deputy collector for the port 
of North Troy, he removed to that village that same year. In 1861 
he was made assistant assessor of the internal revenue, and contin- 
ued to hold both these offices, practicing law to some extent at the 
same time, until May, 1864, when he removed to Newport, then 




/r^~^^^<^^2n>^^f^-^-^<-^ 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 215 

the little village of "Lake Bridge," at the head of Lake Memphre- 
magog, where he associated himself with Lewis H. Bisbee, under 
the firm name of Crane & Bisbee, and devoted himself exclusively 
to the practice of his profession. It will be noticed, therefore, that 
Mr. Crane was, when called to the bar, thirty-two years old, an age 
at which most lawyers, who achieve success, are already in com- 
mand of a lucrative business, and that he spent still another five 
years before seriously undertaking the practice of the law. Most 
men would have found it difficult to adapt themselves at this time 
of life to the requirements of the profession ; that he did not is 
abundantly shown by his immediate and continued success. The 
firm of Crane & Bisbee commanded while it continued an exten- 
sive practice, and when dissolved at the expiration of three years 
by the appointment of Mr. Bisbee as deputy collector for the 
port of Newport, the senior partner, who continued business by 
himself, retained the larger part of this patronage. He continued 
to practice at Newport alone until 1878, when he associated him- 
self with F. E. Alfred, under the style of Crane & Alfred, a firm 
which has always deserved a large and desirable clientage. 

While never having devoted himself to politics, Mr. Crane has 
held at one time and another most of the offices within the gift of 
his town and county. He was for some years chairman of the 
board of selectmen in Newport. In 1867 and 186S he represented 
that town in the general assembly. He was appointed state's 
attorney to serve out the unexpired term of L. H. Bisbee, who 
resigned that office when made deputy collector in 1S67, and he 
was elected to that same office by the people for the biennial term 
of 1872-74. In 1882 he was nominated for senator by the Orleans 
county republican convention. The nomination for this office was 
hotly contested, but Mr. Crane was nominated by a single vote and 
was subsequently elected. He has been United States Commis- 
sioner for Vermont since 1S67. All these positions have been 
acceptably filled by him. While in the house he served on the 
committee on railroads and that on corporations, and in the senate 
was a member of the judiciary committee. He was an influential 
member of both bodies. 

In 185 1 he married Mary A. Smith, who bore him two children, 
both of whom died quite young. His wife herself deceased in 1878. 

Among all callings, the fame of whose followers depends mainly 



2l6 BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR 

upon their written or spoken utterances, the reputation of the law- 
yer is the most unsatisfactory. The author can point to his book, 
which if not always mowiimcntjim acre perennhts, at least shows 
exactly what he has done. The words of the clergyman are spoken 
after careful preparation and upon topics of universal concern. 
The statesman is identified with some public measure, and speaks 
to a whole nation or state. But the lawyer pure and simple, who 
is concerned merely with the trial of causes before courts and 
juries, has not one of these advantages. The subjects with which 
he is engaged, while often of vital importance to the parties, are 
almost invariably of local interest. Of the very first lawyers only 
now and then one is ever employed in what is properly a cause ccl- 
ebrc. The very nature of the employment, although demanding the 
most careful preparation, often renders that preparation abortive. 
Who can forecast the phases of a jury lawsuit } Above all the 
character of the forum is such that the lawyer who speaks with an 
eye to the public applause, usually does so at the expense of his 
client. The business of a lawyer is by every fair means to win his 
case, and the tact, the shrewdness, the genius even, which the 
skillful practitioner exhibits to this end, are of that peculiar sort, 
which is often only appreciated by his brother opponent, and which 
never can be described. For many years Mr. Crane has been 
regarded as one of the foremost lawyers in the county. During 
that time he has been connected with many important suits, and 
has often had occasion to exhibit those peculiar qualities which 
have made him an eminently successful trial lawyer. But to enu- 
merate those causes would be well nigh meaningless now, and 
entirely so a few years from now, and an attempt to delineate those 
qualities would be unintelligible to all but his brother practitioners. 
Mr. Crane does not especially enjoy hard mental work. He is 
not inordinately ambitious and not at all avaricious, and does not 
therefore do as much of it as he might if he cared more for the 
fame or money to be got out of his profession. At the same time 
few men can think better or more to the point than he can when 
he sets himself seriously about it. In mere knowledge of case and 
statute law he is surpassed by several of his brethren, but he has 
an excellent understanding of general principles and a strong legal 
sense, and these qualities make him good counsel when he gives a 
matter his serious attention. 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 21/ 

It is, however, as a trier of questions of fact before juries that he 
especially excels. As already intimated he is rather indifferent to 
the reputation and the money to be made out of a lawsuit, and is 
not, therefore, always seen at his best, unless there is something 
about the case itself which interests him. When thoroughly 
engaged, especially if the case is adapted to him, he acquits him- 
self in a manner which would be creditable in any company. His 
mind is naturally a methodical one. In considering a case he intu- 
itively recognizes what will be its strong points and their relations 
to each other, and when he develops it to the jury he does so in an 
orderly way, giving special prominence with them to what is spe- 
cially prominent in his own mind. This quality, combined with an 
admirable tact in the asking of questions, makes him master of the 
difficult art of putting in a case, a part which is very often assigned 
to him, and which he does in less time, with fewer words, and to a 
much better effect than most lawyers. 

He is equally skillful in cross-e.xamination, where he seldom 
antagonizes a witness, approaching him rather in a manner so con- 
ciliatory and so approving that the poor fellow really thinks that he 
is doing admirable service for the party who called him until he 
happens to notice the uneasiness of the attorney on that side. 
When everything else fails he possesses the difficult art of casting 
over the most straightforward testimony an atmosphere of doubt. 
No matter how honest the witness or how consistent his evidence, 
the subject of this sketch will manage, whether by the incredulity 
manifested upon his own countenance, or the insinuating nature of 
his questions, to leave with the jury the impression that while that 
fellow may be straight enough ordinarily, there is evidently some- 
thing in this particular instance which isn't just right. 

It is, however in the argument of causes to a jury that Mr. Crane 
is the strongest. He is not in the common acceptation of that 
word an orator. His voice is hardly adapted to the addressing 
of large bodies, and he lacks the passion which sways them. 
Apparently the business of public speaking is distasteful to him, 
for he always runs away from an opportunity to make a speech. 
ICven in the trial of causes he is apt to put the argument upon 
some associate. Nevertheless, given twelve men in the jury-box, 
with a case which must be argued and nobody to argue it inv him, 
and the writer conceives that very few lawyers whom he has ever 



2lS • lilOdKAPHY OF THE BAR 

listened to can do it more effectively. And the beauty of it all is 
that whatever the speech which he makes to the jury may in fact 
be, it always • appears to be an argument. He seldom appeals to 
their sympathy, he never assures them that he believes in the jus- 
tice of his cause and that therefore they ought to, but he seems to 
demonstrate to them that his cause is just. And so calm, so can- 
did, so apparently disinterested is he in this task that the jury give 
him his case, often against all evidence and all right, not because 
they want to, but because there really isn't any other way. In his 
arguments he frequently employs his power of sarcasm, which he 
possesses far beyond any other member of the bar, to the great 
amusement of everybody except the victim. 

Mr. Crane, in addition to being a good lawyer, is a good fellow. 
He tells a good story and cracks a good joke, and he possibly 
enjoys his part of his professional life fully as much as its weight- 
ier responsibilities. He is regarded with special kindliness by his 
younger brethren, whom he never seeks to domineer or patronize 
or unnecessarily embarrass, and who find him a pleasant man to be 
in a case with, either as an associate or an opponent. On the 
whole there are but few practicing attorneys who are more thor- 
oughly identified with or whose loss would be more felt by the bar 
of Orleans county. 

B. F. DEMING CARPENTER. 

By Charles H. Jones. 

THE subject of this sketch was born in Danville, Vt., June 12, 
A. D. 1S38. He came of good English stock. His great- 
grandfather, Jonathan Carpenter, was a native of Massachusetts, 
and a soldier in the revolutionary war. His grandfather, Col. 
Chester Carpenter, was born in Randolph, Vt., and came to Derby 
in 181 1, where he lived and died. His father was the late Hon. 
Marshall Carpenter of Derby, judge of probate for the district of 
Orleans from 1856 to 1S62. 

His mother, Harriet Deming, was the daughter of Hon. Benja- 
min F. Deming of Danville, Vt., for many years clerk of the Cale- 
donia county court and judge of probate till elected to congress in 
1833, and who died at Saratoga in 1834 on his return from Wash- 
ington. 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 2I9 

His youth was spent in labor on his father's farm in Derby, at 
the common schools and at Derby Academy. He was a good 
scholar, quick to learn, and excelled in Hterary and rhetorical stud- 
ies. A large and flourishing lyceum was maintained, in which he 
proved a good debater. In 1858 he entered the office of Edwards 
& Stewart at Derby as a student at law, and was admitted to the 
Orleans county bar at the June term, A. D. i860. 

He opened an office at Craftsbury where he remained till 1864, 
when he removed to West Charleston. Here he soon formed a 
partnership with Hon. George N. Dale of Island Pond, which con- 
tinued about five years. In 1880 he moved to Barton Landing, 
where he now resides. 

He represented Charleston in the legislature in 1868 and 1869, 
and was state's attorney for Orleans county in 1870, 1871 and 1872. 
This is an important office, and three successive years of service 
indicate that its duties were well performed. The time will come 
when voung and inexperienced lawyers, however promising, will 
not be chosen for this position. Penal law is the most difficult to 
enforce, and criminals are often defended by the best talent and 
skill. The State and people are entitled to such an efficient ser- 
vice as fulness and experience alone can give. In 1884 Mr. Car- 
penter was elected to the legislature from Barton, representing a 
divided town where passion ran high over the removal of the shire. 
In politics he is a republican, but not a parstian. July 2, 
1863, he was married to Harriet M. Fairchild of Derby, by whom 
he has two sons — Ernest M., born July 29, 1864, and Ray, born 
August 13, 1872, each inheriting a genial nature, and refined and 
scholarly tastes. 

As a counselor Mr. Carpenter is reliable and safe. Thoroughly 
grounded in the principles of law, cautious and conservative by 
nature, cool and candid in judgment, making his client's interest 
his own and fully counting the cost, he often counsels peace where 
the voice of others would be for war. So marked is this tendency 
that he could more truthfully be termed a foe to litigation than a 
breeder of cjuarrels. Yet he is well versed in the art of assault 
and defence, and roused by opposition he is a strong fighter. His 
cases are well prepared, and fairly and honestly tried without sub- 
terfuge or trick. 



220 BIOGRAPHY OF THE liAK. 

As an advocate he confines himself closely to the questions at 
issue with no attempt at display or effect. With impressive voice 
and manner, a ready, fluent, effective speaker, a close and logical 
reasoner, he presents his case with clearness and force. Fair and 
candid in the treatment of opponents, he is close and searching 
in cross-examination, and in the analysis of motive and evidence 
"in which he holds the mirror up to nature." 

In the trial of a cause surprises often occur and counsel are 
placed in trying positions, Mr. Carpenter is capable of making a 
good fight in a waning cause. But "thrice is he armed that hath 
his quarrel just," and he is only at his best when fully in accord 
with the dictates of justice and humanity. His mind is broad and 
deep rather than sharp, his attainments are solid and substantial 
rather than showy. Well versed in parliamentary law, he excels 
as a presiding officer, easy, courteous and dignified. Sensitive to 
criticism, retiring by nature, scorning self-seeking, he is often silent 
where men of less ability push themselves into prominence. 
With extensive reading, a retentive memory, a mirthful nature, 
abreast of current events, he is a social, jovial companion. There 
is nothing of the hedgehog or mule in his composition. Honest in 
sentiment, humane in feeling, broad and charitable in view, his 
sympathies are along the line of public weal and progress, with 
little of Hamlet's gloomy burden. " The time is out of joint, O 
cursed Sprite, that ever I was born to set it right." A sound law- 
yer, a good citizen, a warm and genial friend, he is a generous 
whole-souled man. And when fully roused few will deny him the 
meed of one of the ablest advocates at the Orleans County Bar. 



ASAHEL M. BURK. 

By Hon. P. K. Gl.KF.D. 

ASAHEL M. BURK was born in Morristown in the county of 
Lamoille, on the 28th day of June, 1823. He was the son 
of Sampson and Louisa H. Burk. 

His father was a thrifty farmer, and one of the early settlers of 
the town. He was visited with the blessing of a large family, such 
as are few and fast growing fewer under the false fashion of the day. 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 221 

Mr. Burk attended the schools of his native town and the acad- 
emy at Bakersfield. He engaged in the mercantile business at 
Morrisville for a short time, but like Lincoln did not make it a suc- 
cess. He then removed to Kansas, but soon returned to his native 
state. He studied law with Hon. \V. G. Ferrin at Montpelier, and 
was admitted to the bar of the Lamoille county court at its June 
term, i860. 

He at once opened an office at West Albany, Orleans county, 
where he remained only about six months, when he removed to 
Craftsbury. Here he remained si.x years, and successfully pursued 
his profession. In this short time he earned for himself the repu- 
tation of being an honest, careful, and prudent adviser, and a faith- 
ful and responsible manager of all affairs entrusted to him by his 
clients. 

The death of his father and the condition of his affairs, and 
especially the care of his aged mother, recalled him to Morristown, 
where he has since lived. Mr. Burk, like St. Paul, has never mar- 
ried, but has been the stay of his aged mother and other members 
of his father's family. He has for many years held the office of 
town clerk and treasurer ; has frequently been appointed guardian, 
administrator and executor, and in all these functions has been 
faithful to every trust and of great public benefit. He is now the 
owner of quite a landed estate, and has been rewarded by fortune 
to quite an extent. 

MERRILL JACKSON HILL. 

By E. A. Stewart. 

MERRILL JACKSON HILL, the son of Samuel and Sophia 
Norris Hill, was born in Danville, Vt. His father was a 
physician, and practiced in Danville many years. He died at an 
advanced age in iS/g. Merrill's mother died in 1839 when he was 
a small boy. Merrill was early thrown upon his own resources, and 
from the age of twelve years he earned his own living, providing 
himself with the necessary books for study, and acquiring thereby 
habits of self-reliance, so essential to one's success in any depart- 
ment of life. Having prepared himself for college at the academies 
in Danville and St. Johnsbury, he entered the University of Ver- 
mont in 1847, and graduated in 1851 in the same class with Mat- 

29 



222 BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR 

thew H. Ruckham, now president of that institution. The means 
were mostly earned by teaching during these years, but the fact 
that he was owing something at Iiis graduation did not appall him. 
He immediately went to North Scituate, R. I., where he taught 
one and a half years, thence to Sherbrooke, P. O., where a more 
lucrative position was offered him. He remained here, also, one 
and a half years, and then returned to Vermont with the intention 
of going West or South, but at the urgent request of a sister who 
was in precarious health, and who was very dear to him, having 
encouraged him in his struggles for an education, he decided to 
remain in his own native state. About the first of September, 
1854, he went to Derby, in this county, to take charge of the acad- 
emy. He remained there six years, though he was not at the head 
of the academy all the time. He acquired an excellent reputation 
as an instructor, and probably, if he had desired it, could have 
secured and filled a permanent position in a collegiate institution 
with honor to himself. During his residence in Derby he read law 
in the office of J. L. Edwards, Esq., and was admitted to the bar at 
the June term of Orleans county court, i860. He also varied his 
pursuits by purchasing a farm in the adjoining town of Morgan, 
and digging in the soil. He worked upon it with considerable 
ardor for two or three years and then sold it, but the profits did 
not warrant his engaging further in the real estate business. 

An associate and friend of his wrote as follows, at this time, of 
Mr. Hill's qualities of mind and acquirements as a speaker : The 
gentleman's language is faultless. He always clothes his argu- 
ments with an elegance of diction that other speakers would do 
well to acquire. He has a fine, analytical mind and quick percep- 
tions, and is therefore ready in debate. He discusses the question 
in a pointed, logical manner. Indeed he is too logical, or rather he 
does not introduce that variety into his speeches which may be af- 
forded by one's knowledge of men and things who has been an ex- 
tensive reader and observer. He does not reason by comparison, 
nor enforce his arguments by illustration. In this line he displays 
more talent than tact. His speeches are, as one has said of 
Macauly's style in History of England, "a continued pounding of 
logic from beginning to end." As a lawyer he might make a fair 
jury advocate, but his forte would lie in arguing cases to the court, 
where embelishment, though useful, is not so indispensable to sue- 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 223 

cess. He would make a good special pleader, his analytical mind 
being well fitted for the nice distinctions that characterize that 
branch of the law. 

In September, i860, Mr. Hill opened a law office at West Berk- 
shire, Vt., where he remained nearly eight years, during a part of 
the time being in the customs office at that place. In April, 1868, 
he removed to St. Albans, where he has since resided, continuing 
the practice of the law ; he has also been engaged to quite an 
extent in the insurance business. Soon after his removal to St. 
Albans he commenced the erection of a fine residence on an eli- 
gible street, which he finished to his taste, and thus with a pleasant 
home, a fair share of business in one of New England's most beau- 
tiful villages, Mr. Hill is prepared to enjoy the years that indicate 
the declivity of life. 

In December, 1855, Mr. Hill married Jane, the daughter of Hon. 
Jacob Bates of Derby. She came to a tragic death by her own act 
in August, 1859, when it was supposed she was recovering from a 
long and severe sickness. In December, 1861, he married Mary, 
the eldest daughter of Jasper Rand, Esq., by whom he has two 
daugrhters. 



MILTON R. TYLER. 

THE subject of this sketch was born in Esse.x, Vt., March 18, 
1835, and is the son of Daniel and Permelia (Farrand) Tyler. 
He attended the district school and academy, and afterward entered 
the University of Vermont at Burlington, where he graduated in 
the class of 1859. Immediately after leaving college he engaged 
as principal of the Essex Academy, where he remained two years. 
He entered the office of Anson Soule of Fairfax, where he pur- 
sued the study of the law, and was admitted to the bar of Franklin 
county at its April term, A. D. i860, and soon commenced the 
practice of his profession at Irasburgh, Orleans county, Vt. He 
was elected judge of probate for the district of Orleans in 1863, 
and re-elected in 1864 and 1865. Subsequently he went to Bakers- 
field where he remained thirteen years, enjoying an extensive and 
lucrative practice. He then removed to Burlington. He was 
elected judge of the city court, a position which he held several 



BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR 



years to the entire acceptance of all, receiving at his last election 
all the votes cast but three. He is now in active and successful 
practice at Fergus I'^alls, Minnesota. 



CHARLES I. VAIL. 

THE subject of this biography, the son of Samuel K. and Mary 
D. Vail, was born in Chester, N. Y., November ii, 1837, and 
prepared for college at the Seward Institute, Florida, N. Y. He 
entered Union College, Schenectady, in 1855, and graduated there 
in 1859. He studied law with Hon. Timothy P. Redfield at Mont- 
pelier, Vt., and was admitted to the Washington county bar at its 
September term, A. D. i860, and at once commenced the practice 
of the law at Newport with Charles Robinson as a partner. He 
removed to Irasburgh in the spring of 1862, and continued in prac- 
tice there until April, 1871, when he removed to Blairstown, Iowa, 
where he now resides, still in the active practice of the law. 
December 9, i86i, he married Abbie F. Barnes, daughter of Henry 
E. Barnes of Stowe, Liimoille county, Vt. 



CHARLES WILLIAMS. 

CHARLES WILLIAMS, the only son of Henry and Celynda 
(Greenleaf) Williams, was born in Derby, Vt., January 26, 
1826. He received his education at the common schools and Derby 
Academy. At the age of twenty-two he married Maria C. Trav- 
erse, who still survives him, and resided at Derby several years. 
He then entered the employ of the Fairbanks Scale Manufacturing 
Company of St. Johnsbury, and removed there, his business of 
selling and setting up scales taking him to all parts of the United 
States. Before very long he moved to Melrose, Mass., and from 
1 85 1 to 1 86 1 was in the employ of the Fairbanks Company, under 
the direction of Greenleaf & Brown, their Boston agents. While 
thus engaged in active labor during the day, his evenings were 
spent in hard study, being materially aided by Senator Gooch of 
Melrose in the loan of law and other books. In the winter of i860 
he passed a thorough examination in Boston, and was pronounced 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 225 

well qualified for admission to the bar, but as he had not conformed 
to the law of Massachusetts and rules of the court with relation to 
the admission of attorneys, he could not be admitted. 

In May, iS6i, he returned to his native town, and at the June 
term of that year was admitted a member of the bar of Orleans 
county, and immediately opened an office at Derby Center, although 
at the time he was in failing health. He had several cases at the 
December term of that year, and went to Irasburgh full of zeal for 
his clients, but was prostrated while there, and was obliged to 
return to his home before the adjournment of court. He lingered 
in constant suffering until his death, which occurred March 17, 
1862. He was an honored member of the Congregational church. 
He left to his mourning wife and daughter the heritage of an 
unsullied reputation, and well-founded hope of meeting them in a 
land where death is unknown. 



JULIUS SILAS DORMAN. 

THE subject of this sketch was born in Waterloo, P. O., May 
23. 1837. His father, Orrin Dorman. was married in Fairfa.x, 
Vt., to Miss Julia Swift, and they soon went to Georgia, where they 
remained two or three years, and then removed to Waterloo, which 
was the residence of the family some twelve or fifteen years. They 
then came to Pottonfora short time, and from there to North Troy, 
which was the residence of both the father and mother of our sub- 
ject until their death. 

He received his education at the academy at Granby, P. Q., and 
at the village school at North Troy, pursued the study of the law 
at North Troy in the office of W. D. Crane, and was admitted to 
the bar of Orleans county at the December term, A. D. 1861, and 
soon went into the office of Gen. William W. Grout at Barton to 
look after his business in his office, he having enlisted the October 
previous. June 16, 1863, he enlisted in the iith Vermont Volun- 
teers. In October of that year he was appointed corporal of Co. 
M., and in May, 1864, was promoted to sergeant, and February 16, 
1865, made second lieutenant of Co. G., and commissioned as first 
lieutenant in Co. L., June 21, 1865. Mr. Dorman was discharged 
from the service June 24, 1865, and soon opened an office at North 



226 BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR 

Troy and commenced the practice of law. In 1872 he was appoint- 
ed inspector of customs with no regular station, doing duty wher- 
ever directed by the collector of Vermont. In January, 1883, he 
was appointed consular agent and stationed at Potton, P. O., which 
position he has since held. 



CHARLES H. FLEMING. 

AFTER the most diligent inquiry and thorough investigation 
with relation to this man, I can only find that he studied law 
with Jessie Cooper, and according to the records of the court was 
admitted to the bar of Orleans county at the December term, 1861. 



JOHN BARNEY ROBINSON. 

THE subject of this sketch was born in Brownington, Vt., Feb- 
ruary 5, 1838. He was the son of Benjamin Franklin and 
Nancy (Hayward) Robinson. Jasper Robinson, the paternal grand- 
father of our subject, moved from Weathersfield, Conn., to Brown- 
ington early in the history of that town, and was for many years a 
successful merchant there. He was elected a representative sev- 
eral times, and served as assistant county judge in 1828-29. When 
our subject was two years of age his father moved to Barton, which 
was ever afterward to be his home. 

His early opportunities for obtaining an education were few. His 
father had a large family and vv'as a man of small means, hence 
young Robinson was confined to the district school and a few terms 
at Barton Academy. Soon after his majority he commenced the 
study of law in the office of John P. Sartle of Barton, but in 
August, 1861, although nearly fitted for admission to the bar, he 
relinquished his law studies and enlisted in Co. D, 4th Vermont 
Volunteers. In November of that year he was severely injured in 
one knee, and soon returned home on a furlough, and June 18, 
1862, received his discharge. He never fully recovered from the 
hurt. Upon his return home on his furlough he immediatel)' 
resumed his law studies, and was admitted to the bar of Orleans 
county at the December term, i86t. After receiving his discharge 
he contracted partnership for the practice of the law with Benjamin 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 22/ 

H. Steele, under the firm name of Steele & Robinson, with offices 
at Derby Line and Ba.rton. This continued until Mr. Steele was 
elected one of the judges of the supreme court, when George N. 
Dale of Island Pond took Mr. Steele's place, the firm becoming 
Dale & Robinson. This firm from the first had a good practice. 
Mr. Robinson was a bright, active man. What he may have lacked 
in professional attainments was fully made up by his tenacity of 
purpose and untiring energy. Each and every case that came to 
his office was diligently and carefully prepared, and when it came 
to court was tried for all it was worth. As an advocate he was 
direct, logical and practical. "He was too blunt and frank for art, 
and too independent for flattery." A prominent characteristic of 
Mr. Robinson was his love of fun. Himself a wit of no mean 
order, he highly appreciated it in others; his fun-loving modes were 
familiar in social hours, and enlivened the whole bar. He was 
elected state's attorney in 1867, and re-elected in 1868. He was 
married January 25, 1865, to Helen R. Ellis, who, with one son. 
Homer E. Robinson, survive him. 

Mr. Robinson deceased May 15, 1874, at the very threshold of 
what bid fair to be a successful professional life. 



LEWIS H. BISBEE. 

Bench and Bar of Chicngo. 

LEWIS H. BISBEE was born in the town of Derby, Orleans 
county. Vt., March 28, 1839. His father, David Bisbee, was 
a farmer. His education was acquired in the public schools of 
his native town up to the time his ambition for a higher education 
led him to seek the means to obtain it. He worked on a farm sum- 
mers, attending school winters, until about si.xteen years of age, 
when he fell back upon his own resources to make a further advance 
in the direction of accomplishing the designs he had formed for his 
future. He had the courage, the ambition, the energy, and the 
tenacity of purpose to overcome material obstacles. Prepared for 
college in the academies at Glover, Derby and Morrisville, in North- 
ern Vermont, he entered St. Hyacinth College near Montreal, 
Canada, when but nineteen years of age, graduating when twenty- 
one. The course there being conducted in the French language 



228 BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR. 

he mastered it, and is now a proficient French scholar. He subse- 
quently read law with J. L. Edwards, a prominent practitioner at 
Derby, paying his way mainly by teaching French, and was admit- 
ted to practice in June, 1862. This course and outcome is a forci- 
ble illustration of the power and conquering force of mind and well 
directed will power in overcoming obstacles which appear to those 
of less vigorous intellect and decided purpose insurmountable. The 
same month he was admitted to the bar, he enlisted as a private in 
Co. E, 9th Vt. Infantry, and was afterward promoted to the cap- 
taincy of Co. H. of the same regiment, and served with decided 
credit through all the hardships and severe service which that 
excellent regiment passed, and was always found at the front, in 
the thickest of whatever battle or service it was engaged in, which 
were many and often severe. He was captured at Harper's Ferry, 
released on parole, and sent to Camp Douglas, Chicago, where he 
remained until exchanged, when he rejoined his regiment and 
remained with it until i<S64, when he resigned on account of sick- 
ness and returned to Newport, Vt., and engaged in the practice of 
law, soon building up an extensive and lucrative business. 

About this time he married Miss Jane E. Hinman, the accomplished 
daughter of Aaron Hinman of Derby, one of the first families in 
Vermont, and of that good old New England stock, the virtues and 
morals of which have spread through the West, permeating and 
elevating the tone and character of the people wherever they 
find lodgment. Mrs. Bisbee is an estimable, amiable, and interest- 
ing woman, who presides with dignity over a home of attractive 
and pleasant surroundings. The elegant and costly residence 
which Mr. Bisbee has recently built in the beautiful suburban town 
of Hydepark would grace and ornament the choicest residence 
streets of Chicago or any other city. The hospitality and good 
cheer met with there are in keeping with the elegant home, whose 
hosts are esteemed by their friends and in social circles. They 
have an interesting and pleasant family, which makes the otherwise 
attractive home the more attractive. 

In 1865 Mr. Bisbee was elected state's attorney of Orleans county, 
where he lived, and was re-elected in 1867, but soon resigned to 
accept the position of deputy collector of customs, which office he 
filled until i86g, when he was elected to the legislature. He was 
re-elected in 1S70. He was an active and prominent member of 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 229 

that body, being a member of the most important committees, and 
was the leader of his party in debates, contested legislation, and 
was acknowledged to be the best, most vigorous and effective 
speaker on the floor in ex tempore debates. He made his mark 
there, and also his impress upon the acts of that body. From 1865 
to 1870 he was United States Commissioner from Newport under 
the extradition treaty. In May, 1871, he moved to Chicago, and 
had hardly become rooted in business when occurred the great fire. 
In the reorganization, rebuilding, and re-establishing of order out 
of the confusion and chaotic condition in which the fire left every- 
thing, he came to the front by virtue of his superior intelligence, 
tact, energy and judgment. Old established lines of prejudices 
and ruts of business were partially obliterated by the fire, and 
Lewis H. Bisbee saw his opportunities to enter an open field for a 
free and equal contest for a high position, in which the bravest and 
best were sure to win. He had unwavering faith in the future of 
Chicago, seized the opportunity, and has won. 

He has been associated with different persons in his practice, but 
much of the time alone. He has been and is one of the most suc- 
cessful jury and chancery lawyers in the Northwest. He enjoys a 
large and lucrative practice of the higher order. His conduct of 
the case known as the B. F. Allen Blanket mortgage case for Hoyt 
Sherman especially, was conducted with great ability and tact, and 
he was highly complimented by courts and bar; also the noted 
Sturges case, and many others could be enumerated, for the man- 
agement of which he has won signal credit. Few attorneys have 
attained to such high position at the bar in so short a time. 

In 1878 he was elected to the legislature of Illinois, receiving 
nearly the unanimous vote of his district, one of the most populous 
and wealthy in the state. In this body which counted among its 
members some of the ablest men in the state, he at once took a 
leading position as a ready and able debater, and an influential and 
judicious legislator, originating and championing some of the most 
important measures. He nominated, John A. Logan for United 
States Senator in a speech, the eloquence and force of which did 
much to secure his election, which followed. He is a natural ora- 
tor, a clean cut, incisive, and logical thinker and reasoner, a man of 
fine figure and physique, and of commanding presence, which, with 
his attractive delivery makes him an effective and interesting, a 
30 



230 BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR 

graceful and forcible speaker before a jury or a promiscuous audi- 
ence. He is an ardent republican, and his voice and eloquence are 
heard in the important campaigns when the principles of the party 
are at stake. 

He is an affable, genial, and generously endowed gentleman under 
all circumstances. Clothed with becoming dignity, he is still with- 
out vanity ; courteous and obliging, but permitting no undue famil- 
iarity ; painstaking and earnest in the interests of his clients, with 
fidelity to integrity and honor; gifted by nature with the sturdy 
qualities of mind, heart and body, so characteristic of the best New 
England stock, he has developed and improved them. He is a suc- 
cessful man as a lawyer a and a good citizen — a man of exemplary 
habits. He is a self-made man in the fullest sense, and being in 
the prime of life there is a future of promise before him. He has 
already illustrated the annals of this state at the bar, in the legis- 
lature, and in shaping public opinion and sentiment ; a man of 
force and character, he is liable to make a still further impress on 
the history of his time. 

ELIJAH STRONG COWLES. 

EIJJAH STRONG COWLES was born at Coventry, Vt., 
April 30, 1S36, and is the son of Seth Fairchild Cowles and 
Sylvia Strong, his wife, she being the daughter of Hon. Elijah 
Strong, formerly of Brownington, Orleans county. Young Cowles 
early obtained such an education as the public schools at home could 
give, and from there he went to the academy at Brownington. Like 
many ambitious Vermont boys, he taught school to get means to 
go on with his studies. The public school in his own district, as 
well as those in the neighboring towns of Barton, Troy, and other 
places, were the fields of his labors and successes. He continued 
his studies in the academy at Peacham, and subsequently took a 
more advanced course at St. Johnsbury Academy. 

While at St. Johnsbury he took the place of principal of the 
high school, and also, on the invitation of Hon. Ephraim Paddock, 
he entered his office as a student at law, attending the school dur- 
ing the day and studying in the office morning and evening. Hard 
work and long hours were too much for his health, and he was 
obliged to give up both work and study. Rest and a sea voyage 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VEKMONT. 23 1 

soon restored his health, and afterspending some time in the offices 
of Enoch and Amasa Bartlett at Coventry and Irasburgh he was 
admitted to the bar of Orleans county at June term, 1S62, and 
entered on the practice of the profession at Coventry. 

There being little inducement for a lawyer to remain in that 
town, Cowles removed in 1866 to New York City, where he was 
soon admitted, and entered at once into a fair practice. Becoming 
interested in business on the Jersey side of the river, he removed 
his office across the river, and afterwards went into partnership 
with Washington B. Williams, one of the foremost lawyers in that 
state, and the firm of Williams & Cowles is now one of the best 
law firms in that large city. Mr. Cowles is a republican, and usu- 
ally takes an active part in the national campaigns in that city, and 
stands well as a popular public speaker. He is identified with the 
charitable and religious movements of the city, is one of the 
trustees of the Children's Home, president of the County Sunday- 
school Association, and in 1884 he was sent by the State Sunday- 
school Association to represent the state in the international 
convention at Louisville, Ky. Mr. Cowles seems to have been suc- 
cessful as a lawyer, as a citizen, and as a man. 



GEORGE D. WYMAN. 

THE subjectof this sketch was born in Chelsea, Orange county, 
Vt., June 1 8, 1828, and is the son of Daniel and Anna (Wil- 
son) Wyman, the former of whom was of Scotch and the latter of 
Irish descent. The W^ymans came to Massachusetts in the year 
1622. The Wilsons were living in Chester, N. H., as early as 1725. 
The immediate family of our subject were from Lee, Oneida county, 
N. Y., where the paternal grandfather, Samuel Wyman, died. 

Young Wyman's education was obtained at the common schools 
and the academy at Bradford, where he was fitted for entering col- 
lege with the exception of Greek. Subsequently he took a full 
course, and graduated at Comer's Commercial College, Boston, 
Mass. Upon arriving at majority he went to Boston, and there 
and at Philadelphia engaged in the business of book-keeping 
until 1852. 



232 BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR 

At that time there being so much said of the rich mines in Cali- 
fornia he repaired to that state, and engaged in mining until the 
latter part of 1854, when he came east as far as Minnesota, where 
he occupied himself in buying and selling real estate until Septem- 
ber 20, i860. He then returned to Vermont and entered the Peo- 
ple's Bank at Derby Line, and at the same time pursued the study 
of the law with Benjamin H. Steele, and at the June term, 1862, 
of the Orleans county court, was admitted to the bar. 

After his admission Mr. Wyman engaged with Mr. Steele, and 
continued at work in his ofifice until the spring of 1865. After 
this, for about two years, he was engaged in mining in Canada. In 
December, 1867, he was appointed deputy collector and inspector 
of customs for the port of Derby Line, which office he has held to 
the present time to the entire acceptance of all. Mr. Wyman is a 
democrat in politics and has never married. 



JOHN YOUNG. 

By Hon. John L. Edwards. 

JOHN YOUNG, the subject of this sketch, was born in Stan- 
stead in the Province of Quebec, March 31, 1839. His parents, 
Alexander and Mary (Drew) Young, were also born in Stanstead, 
where his father died in 1850 and his mother still resides. 

Mr. Young's early education was acquired at the district school, 
after which he prepared for college at the Stanstead Academy, then 
under the supervision of John A. Jameson, now one of the judges 
of the supreme court of Illinois, Gilbert, and Dennison B. Gage. 
His progress at this institution was rapid and so thorough that he 
was enabled to enter college in the sophomore class. With a mind 
thoroughly disciplined under these eminent instructors, he entered 
the Wesleyan University at Middletown, Conn., in 1857. At this 
institution his deportment and scholarship gained for him an envi- 
able reputation. Diligent in his studies and mindful of every duty 
devolving upon him as a member of the university, he was enabled 
to rank among the very first of an unusually large class in that 
excellent institution. Mr. Young graduated at this institution with 
high honors in i860. 

Mr. Young had, during his whole course of study, contemplated 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 233 

the legal profession as the great work of his life, and so tenacious 
was he of this that he had no sooner graduated than he began to 
cast about to see how he could accomplish his great purpose. To 
him it was everything. His limited means had already been 
exhausted in his college course, but he was in nowise disheartened, 
his eye was fi.xed upon the goal, and every obstacle was brushed 
away as though it were but a feather in a giant's hand. 

To accomplish his purpose he engaged as principal of the Derby 
Academy in the summer of i860, and continued as such in that 
institution to the close of the fall term, 1861. He also at the same 
time commenced the study of the law in the office of J. L. Edwards 
in Derby, where he spent his time not occupied in the discharge of 
his duties as principal of the institution. His great powers of 
endurance and ripe scholarship enabled him to discharge his duties 
as teacher with fidelity, and still make rapid progress in the profes- 
sion he had chosen. In these few months he had accomplished in 
his profession what is usually acquired by the law student in a 
much longer time. During all this time he had no side issues to 
distract his attention from the leading idea of his life, and came to 
the bar admirably fitted for the discharge of its arduous duties at 
the June term of Orleans county court, A. D. 1862. Here a new 
era in his life was dawning upon him which required all his ener- 
gies. He had reached the crisis where more than half who set out 
in the great work fall behind, languish and perish, and the merci- 
less waves of oblivion sweep them from their comrades, while the 
rest remain with firm grasp but with varied success, struggling for 
the prize that is before them. 

At this time the profession in Orleans county was well supplied 
in numbers and in talent, and there seemed but slight foothold for 
the young practitioner ; but one who had read law in Orleans 
county and had become acquainted with the leading members of 
that bar always felt it a hardship to be compelled to go beyond the 
reach of its social influence. Such was the feeling entertained by 
Mr. Young, and he chose rather to accommodate himself to a mea- 
ger support than to surrender the relations he had cherished at 
that bar. 

With mingled feelings of hope and fear, Mr. Young took up his 
residence in South Troy in 1862, and there commenced the practice 
of the law. His scanty means supplied only a small but choice 



234 BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR 

library. His library, however, had one advantage over the libraries 
of beginners generally; it was well read, and it soon became a for- 
midable weapon in his hands. At this period our great civil war 
was raging, and law business was comparatively at a standstill 
everywhere. Nothing daunted, Mr. Young turned neither to the 
right nor the left, but kept his eye steadily fixed upon his profes- 
sion, and in the language of the poet, '.' Left all meaner things to 
low ambition and the pride of kings." 

Though life with him could hardly supply his daily wants, here, 
with a small beginning, was laid the foundation of his future suc- 
cess. Whether business came or not it was all the same, his work 
went manfully on, and he became familiar with the leading cases 
and great principles of the common law, which in after years he 
turned to the very best account, enabling him to do double the 
business of the ordinary lawyer in the same time. 

Being foreign born, Mr. Young was naturalized in December, 
1866. In 1867, Mr. Young removed to Derby Line, where he con- 
tinued the practice of his profession. Here was a wider field for 
business, and he soon began to reap the benefit of his hitherto 
laborious life. Mr. Young remained at Derby Line in the success- 
ful practice of his profession until 1881, when he removed to New- 
port, where he became a member of the late firm of Edwards, 
Dickerman & Young. That firm having dissolved in 1886, Mr. 
Young entered into copartnership with Jerry E. Dickerman, under 
the firm name of Dickerman & Young. 

Although Mr. Young has hardly reached the meridian of his pro- 
fessional career, yet he has accomplished much. He has established 
himself among the leading members of the bar of Vermont. W'ith 
a naturally vigorous constitution, a well balanced logical mind and 
a retentive memory, joined to a life of industry and studious habits, 
very much may yet be expected of him. 

His vigilant foresight and careful preparation of his cases, both 
as regards the facts and the law, renders him a formidable compet- 
itor, but better far than this, it enables him to see that his client 
has the full benefit of all his legal rights. His cases are well held 
in hand, and the emergencies are very few that have not been care- 
fully considered in their preparation. 

Mr. Young was married to Augusta A. Young, June 3, 1866, by 
which marriage there is one son, George B. Young. 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 235 

JAMES T. ALLEN. 

By Ma.i. Josiah Grout. 

THE subject of this writing was born in Hydepark, Vt., Feb- 
ruary 3, A. D. 1830, and was educated in the common school 
and Johnson Academy. 

His father's name was Ira Allen, and his mother's maiden name 
Eveline Page, sister of Hon. Russel S. Page of Hydepark. James 
T. spent his childhood and youth on the farm with his father in 
Hydepark, commencing life for himself as a merchant in Eden, 
afterward trading in Morrisville. At one time he traveled the road 
with a pedler's cart, and it is said successfully. He was a deputy 
sheriff in Lamoille county, and while occupying such office read 
law with Childs & Benton, lawyers at Hydepark, being admitted to 
the Lamoille county bar at the December term, A. D. 1862. 

He opened a law office at Newport, Orleans county, in the fall 
of 1863, where he continued in active practice until his death in 
"1876. He was court auditor for Orleans county under the county 
plan for a number of years. In 1850 he married Sarah Ordaway, 
who deceased in 1865. By this marriage he had one child, a 
daughter. He again married a Mrs. Keith, whose maiden name 
was Lizzie Shattuck. Thus briefly have we the life of our subject, 
in the outline, of his deeds and doings, although not as full of years 
as many, for he was cut down in the full vigor of his powers, yet as 
replete as most with activity. Mr. Allen was more successful as a 
lawyer than in any of his other undertakings. He had not the 
accomplishment of finished scholarly attainments, and made no 
pretensions in this direction, but relied more upon common sense 
and good judgment, which he possessed in degree sufficient to ren- 
der him reasonably clear and fairly successful in the management 
of his cases. He was forceful and fearless, espousing all his work 
with all his might. He had a happy faculty of gathering business, 
and after the first years of his practice never lacked for work to do. 
He frequently had cases in the United States courts, where he 
always contended for his positions with vigorous reasons, and sus- 
tained himself as well as the average lawyer in such places. He 
had quite a full practice under the National Bankrupt act, and was 
always fully occupied while in practice at Newport. He will be 
remembered by those who had his acquaintance as an energetic, 
aggressive, determined man. 



236 BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR. 

GEORGE W. TODD. 

THE subject of this sketch was born in Rindge, N. H., Novem- 
ber 19, 1828. He was educated at the academies in Jaffrey 
and Marlow, N. H., and at Brattleboro, Vt., and also under private 
tutors. After being a student of medicine for two years he relin- 
quished the same for the study of law, which he pursued at Win- 
chendon, Mass., and with the late Chief Justice Edmund L. Gushing, 
LL. D., at Charlestown, N. H. Subsequently he was graduated 
from the state and national law school at Poughkeepsie, N. Y., and 
was admitted to practice in that state, and afterward in Orleans 
county, Vt. After being engaged a few years in that jjrofession he 
abandoned it to become a teacher. For seven years he was princi- 
pal of the Orleans Liberal Institute at Glover, Vt., three years at 
Marlow Academy, one of the high school at Edgartovvn, Mass., and 
three years each of the Leno.K and Great Harrington high schools 
of the same state. He then became principal of the McCollom 
Institute at Mount Vernon, where for six years he kept the well- 
known academy in the front rank in prestige and prosperity. Mr. 
Todd had served for fourteen years altogether upon school boards 
in the various places where he had resided. In politics he was a 
republican, but was so engrossed in educational matters that he 
gave but little attention to civil affairs. In 1857 he was chosen a 
representative to the legislature from Rindge and re-elected in 
1858, only two votes being cast against him the latter year. He 
was elected a state senator from the Amherst District in 1S79, '^^'^^ 
served a biennial term with distinguished credit. Mr. Todd mar- 
ried twice — the first time to Mary Ann Blodgett of Jaffrey, \. H., 
and the last time Sarah J. Chapin, daughter of Deacon Harvey 
Chapin of Holyoke, Mass., who survives him, but with no children. 
In the death of Mr. Todd his state loses an honorable and upright 
man, one who had gained for himself an enviable rank as an edu- 
cator, and who had served with distinction in both branches of the 
legislature. 

RILEY E. WRIGHT. 

RILEY E. WRIGHT, the son of Erastus and Mary A. (Fair- 
brother) Wright, was born at Westminster, Vt., July 24, 
1S39. When he was about three years of age his parents moved 
to Coventry, Orleans county. His primary education was obtained 








^Xt 




ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 237 

at the common schools, and the academies of Coventry, Glover 
and Derby, attending school spring and fall and teaching winters. 
In 1859 ^^ went to St. Hyacinthe, Canada, to study and perfect 
his knowledge of the F"rench language, remaining there and at St. 
Rosalia until well versed in that language. In the fall of 1859 he 
went to Powers Institute, Bernardstown, Mass., where he remained 
about a year as the teacher of the French language in that institu- 
tion, and also at the same time pursuing the study of Latin and 
Greek. In the summer of 1861 he was examined for and entered 
Dartmouth College, intending to return and complete a collegiate 
course of study there, but instead of so doing, in September of that 
year he entered Middlebury College, and remained there one year, 
or until the fall of 1862. At this time the great struggle between the 
North and the South being the all-absorbing topic, and the call for 
troops ever ringing in his ears, young Wright concluded to abandon 
his studies and answer his country's call. He returned to his 
father's house in Coventry, and in less than one week's time, with 
the help of some others, succeeded in recruiting a full company, 
which was mustered into service as Co. H, 15th Vermont Volun- 
teers, of which company young Wright was elected captain. He 
served faithfully in this capacity until the summer of 1863, when 
he was mustered out, and early in the fall of that year he entered 
the law office of the late Judge Benjamin H. Steele at Derby Line, 
and was admitted to the bar of Orleans county December 31, 1864. 
In April, 1865, Mr. Wright removed to Baltimore, Md., where he 
has been engaged in the active practice of the law to the present 
time, having been employed in many of the most important cases 
of his city and state. Among the more important ones with which 
he has been identified as attorney may be mentioned that of I^rant 
vs. Khlen, et. al., reported in the Fifty-ninth Maryland Reports, 
involving about $200,000. Mr. Wright represented the principal 
defendant. He was also counsel for Gen. E. B. Tyler, late post- 
ma.ster of Baltimore City, against whom charges were preferred in 
1879, during President Hayes' administration. The charges were 
of a venomous and scandalous nature, but generally believed to 
have been inspired by personal and political enemies. The investi- 
gation lasted for some thirteen weeks. The fight was hot, and the 
charges were pressed with great vigor. The testimony was reviewed 
personally liy the president. The investigation resulted in the 
31 



238 BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR 

acquittal and entire exoneration of Gen. Tyler. At, the time, the 
trial excited great interest and general attention not only in Mary- 
land, but throughout the country. September 12, 1866, he mar- 
ried Mary E. Collier of Newport, Vt. 



WILLIAM D. TYLER. 

Xl/ILLIAM D. TYLER was born in Esse.x, Vt., March 17, 
* » 1824, the son of Daniel and Permelia (Farrand) Tyler. His 
education was obtained at the common schools of his native town 
and the Essex Academy. In 1854 he entered the office of Aaron 
and Charles Soule of Fairfax, for the study of the law. He 
remained there for a time, but soon engaged in farming and mer- 
cantile business, reading law as he could find opportunity, and was 
not admitted to the Franklin county bar until the April term, A. D. 
1864. In April, 1865, he went to Irasburgh, and was appointed 
register, his brother, Milton R. Tyler, being judge of probate for 
the district of Orleans, and served until December, 1865. During 
this time Judge Tyler was obliged to be absent most of the time, 
and the duties of the office were performed almost wholly by our 
subject, and to the satisfaction of the district. After December 
he opened an office at Irasburgh, and has been in practice there 
since. As a lawyer Mr. Tyler is not distinguished as an advocate, 
but has excellent judgment and a good knowledge of the law, and 
it is in the department of counselor that he best succeeds. He 
also excels as a conveyancer He was elected town clerk for the 
town of Irasburgh in 1S68, and has held the office since. He rep- 
resented that town in the legislature in 1874 and 1875, and it was 
largely due to his untiring efforts that the bill to remove the shire 
of Orleans county from Irasburgh was defeated. He was married 
September i, 1855, to Mary E. Haynes of Plattsburgh, N. Y. 



JOSIAH GROUT. 

THE subject of this biography was born at Compton. Canada, 
May 28, 1842. His parents were Josiah and Sophronia (Ayer) 
Grout. His father was of English ancestry, which had resided in 
this country upwards of a century at the time of his birth. His 





'A^\^an-t 



•^^ 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 239 

mother descended from that good old Scotch-Irish stock which fig- 
ured so prominently in the early settlement of the country. Thus 
combining closely the elements of fearless manhood and sterling 
integrity, these parents were married at St. Johnsbury, from 
whence, after a brief stay in their new life they removed to Conip- 
ton. Residing in the Dominion a few years, they returned to the 
town of Kirby, where his father secured the family homestead near 
St. Johnsbury East, which is still kept in the family name. 

Upon these ancestral acres he reared a family of ten children, of 
which Josiah was the fourth, and there he passed his boyhood, con- 
tending with propositions of farm life. His education was limited 
to the common school, with a partial academic course. 

The large family, the limited means, and extensive farming oper- 
ations of his father rendered it necessary for the children to share 
their time and toil in the industrial endeavors of the home. This 
Josiah faithfully did, performing cheerfully his full share of the 
farm work, attending the district school as he could be spared. He 
industriously made the most of a few privileged terms at the acad- 
emies of Glover and St. Johnsbury, from which latter institution in 
October, 1861, not yet twenty-one years of age, overflowing with 
the love of country, he enlisted in Co. I, ist regiment, Vermont 
Cavalry. Upon the organization of his company he was chosen 
second lieutenant, in the following May was promoted first lieuten- 
ant, and on the first day of April, 1863, was commissioned captain 
of his company. 

In a cavalry fight with Mosby at* Broad Run, Va., on the same 
first day of April, he was severely wounded, from which, and his 
impaired health that followed, he was honorably discharged in 
October following. 

Under the governor's call for troops occasioned by the St. Albans 
raid, Capt. Grout raised a company, was made its captain, and on 
the organization of the frontier regiment of cavalry, he was 
appointed one of the majors. With this rank he was in command 
of the post at St. Albans until the war closed in June, 1865. 

Upon retiring from the army he resumed the study of law at 
Barton in the office of his brother, William W. Grout, and at the 
December term, 1865, was admitted to the bar at Irasburgh. For 
about a year he was in partnershij) with his brother in law practice 
and publishing the Orleans Independent Standard. 



240 EIOGKArilY OF THE BAR 

In November, 1866, he was appointed deputy collector of cus- 
toms, and stationed at Island Pond. He continued to hold this 
office, being stationed at Island Pond, St. Albans, and Newport 
until the spring of 1872, although his home was at Newport after 
1869. In October, 1868, he was married to Harriet Hinman, 
daughter of Aaron Hinman, one of the oldest and best families of 
Orleans county, and they have one son, Aaron Hinman Grout. In 
1869 he formed a copartnership with L. H. Bisbee of Newport, 
under the firm name of Bisbee & Grout, for the practice of the law, 
which continued with a large and lucrative business until 1871, 
when Mr. Bisbee removed to Chicago. 

Theophilus Grout, a brother, then entered the firm, and contin- 
ued until the spring of 1875, when Josiah followed the example of 
his former partner, Mr. Bisbee, and removed to Chicago. He prac- 
ticed law in Chicago with good success for three years and then 
removed to Moline, III, where he engaged in the manufacture of 
scales. A stock company was formed for that purpose, of which 
Mr. Grout was president and business manager, a position which 
he still holds. In 1881 he returned to Vermont and purchased the 
old Hinman homestead at Derby, one of the best farms in Orleans 
county, with extensive farm buildings in the village of Derby Cen- 
ter, where he now resides. Mr. Grout's highest aim has been to 
make his broad acres produce to the highest extent, and to fill his 
pastures and stables with the choicest flocks and herds in the land, 
giving to his agricultural pursuits here, and his manufacturing 
interests West, his entire atttjption. 

Although not a politician according to the common acceptation 
of the term, Maj. Grout has been several times honored with places 
of public responsibility and trust. In 1872 he was elected repre- 
sentative from the town of Newport, and re-elected in 1874. He 
was an active and prominent member both sessions, serving on the 
judiciary and other committees. At the close of the session of 
1874, Hon. H. Henry Powers, the then speaker, having been elect- 
ed one of the judges of the supreme court, and having resigned the 
speakership, Maj. Grout was elected to fill the vacancy. During 
his residence in Moline he was elected supervisor of Rock Island 
county for Moline. In 1884 he was elected representative from 
the town of Derby. 

As a lawyer Maj. Grout grew rapidly from the date of his admis- 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 24I 

sion to the bar, and was universally popular with the bar and the 
people, and at the time of his leaving the state was one of the most 
successful lawyers in the county. He was noted for preparing his 
cases carefully, and trying them with masterly skill. He was clear 
and logical in the statement of the law in the higher courts. He 
was especially successful in the trial of jury causes. His arguments 
were plain, direct and forcible. His powers of repartee and sar- 
casm were great, but these faculties were used with good taste, and 
their exercise always restrained within the bounds of courtesy. 
His language was usually simple, but his choice of words was felic- 
itous, and when e.xcited his expressions became eloquent, and his 
manner corresponded to his thought. As a citizen he holds the 
respect and confidence of all who know him. In social life he is 
genial and companionable, warm in his attachments and firm in his 
friendships, a gentleman liberal in all his views. 



HENRY C. BATES. 

By Ei.isHA May, Esij. 

THE subject of this sketch is the son of Lewis C. and Lucy 
A. (Dodge) Bates, and was born at Derby, Vt., January 29, 
1843. The parents were possessed of great integrity and industry, 
and more than common intelligence. The mother is now (1886) 
living, at the advanced age of eighty years, and is in possession of 
all her faculties. His early history is a mere repetition of that of a 
majority of those in the profession of law. Brought up to labor on 
the farm, he attended the common schools, and when they no 
longer afforded the necessary instruction, he pursued a course of 
study at the academy at Derby, Vt. 

This old school has sent out a large number of strong men and 
women. Like many other academies in Vermont, it reflects great 
credit upon the system which grew and flourished at the commence- 
ment of the present century. 

Some of the greatest men, at some time in their lives, were 
either pupils or instructors in the academy. The most celebrated 
American — excepting, perhaps, Benjamin Franklin — taught for a 
time in an humble academy in Fryeburg, Maine. 

The instruction Mr. Bates received at Derby was thorough. He 



242 BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR 

then taught in the common schools and in the Essex County Gram- 
mar school, read law at Charleston, Vt., in the office of Edwards & 
Dickerman, and in December, 1866, was admitted to the bar in 
Orleans county. During the rebellion he served the country as a 
member of Co. C, 4th Massachusetts Heavy Artillery. Married to 
Miss Laura E. Jenness, March 10, 1866, he moved his household 
goods to Wheelock in 1867, remained there a short time, and thence 
removed to West Concord and Guildhall. 

At the last place he remained till 1873, where he formed a part- 
nership with O. S. Burke, and practiced his profession at St. Johns- 
bury, Vt., as a partner of the firm of Burke & Bates till Mr. Burke's 
death in September, 1876. 

Till 1882 he conducted a large and increasing practice, when he 
became senior partner in firm of Bates & May. In 1870 Mr. Bates 
served as census enumerator in Esse.K county, and in 1880-82 as 
state's attorney of Caledonia county. At present he is the nomi- 
nee for first senator in the same county. 

While practicing his profession in Essex county, Mr. Bates made 
for himself a reputation of a first class jury lawyer. This was 
done in the only possible way, viz : By the most careful stud)- of 
the law and facts of each case. 

In the case of State vs. Knowles, charged with arson in burning 
Norton mills, tried before Judge Peck in 1869 or 1870, the qualities 
of a good lawyer were conspicuously shown. The defense was in- 
sanity, and the case required much prudent management. This it 
had, and the prisoner was acquitted. 

The power to see and develop the .strong points of the case on 
trial has been Mr. Bates' strongest characteristic. He is not and 
never has been a technical lawyer. In training as well as of make 
up, he is of broad gauge type. A plea in abatement he shuns, if 
possible, in a legal discussion, and the mint and cummin of facts 
in a jury trial are never alluded to, but he rather speaks of the 
weightier matters. 

He possesses a faculty somewhat rare, that of commanding the 
confidence of juries before whom he appears. They say they think 
him honest. 

The court give him attention while he discusses questions of law, 
and this evidently upon the ground that while he may err as to 
conclusions, he never strains at the gnat and swallows a camel. 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 243 

Another characteristic of Mr. Bates is his love of fun. Himself 
a wit of no mean order, he appreciates it highly in others. In 
argument he at once sees the veins of fun, if any, in it, and works 
them for all they are worth. 

No man ever won verdicts from hostile juries who has neither 
wit nor the sense of the ridiculous in his make-up. Ridicule is 
never so effective as humor. One wounds and the other does not. 

The great lawyer is always cool and self-preserved. Mr. Bates 
never loses his head. When his opponent lets him fall he strikes 
upon his feet ; some very good lawyers when switched off the main 
line of a case are not able to get back the same day. This the 
opponents of Mr. Bates never do. He is full of resources, and has 
these resources well in hand. 

Each year's practice has taught its lesson, and these lessons 
have been well remembered. No opponent catches Mr. Bates in 
the same trap a second time. 

Wary, careful and vigilant, Mr. Bates prefers the defense, not 
because of cowardice, but because his mind is conservative. 

To persons not acquainted with his peculiarities, and his moods 
and habits, Mr. Bates may appear unsocial, and not interested in 
the affairs of the world. A more mi.staken notion was never enter- 
tained. He is deeply interested in all moral and social questions 
of the day, and he is particularly so in regard to the history of the 
late war and the soldiers. 

Like many other attorneys, Mr. Bates leads an active, busy life. 
Cheerful and helpful, he commands the confidence of all who 
know him. 



C. HENRY BENTON. 

CHICNRY BENTON, the son of Reuben C. and Almira 
• (Fletcher) Benton, was born at Lunenburgh, l{ssc.\ county, 
Vt., February 26, 1841. His primary education was obtained at 
the common schools and academies of his native county, and he 
entered the University of Vermont at Burlington in i860 when 
nineteen years of age, and continued there until his patriotism 
would not allow of his remaining longer, and he enlisted as a pri- 
vate in Co. D, 5th Vermont Volunteers, and was mustered into 
service September 16, 1861 ; he served in various capacities three 



244 BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR. 

years, and was mustered out in the Shenandoah Valley, September 
1 6, 1864. He returned to Vermont and read law with his brother. 
Col. R. C. Benton at Hydepark for a time, when he entered the 
law school at Albany, N. Y., taking a full course, and was admitted 
to practice in all the courts of New York by the supreme court at 
Albany on May 6, 1866. Returning to Vermont he was admitted 
as a member of the Lamoille county bar at its May term, A. D. 
1866, and November of that year commenced the practice of his 
profession at South Troy, Orleans county. Mr. Benton soon 
became known as a skillful and successful attorney, but was not 
contented with the limited law business of that agricultural region, 
and in October, 1871, he removed to Minneapolis, Minn., where an 
ample field presented itself for the display of his talent and energy. 
He at once took front rank among the attorneys of that city, and 
today is one of the ablest. In the words of another, independence, 
firmness, resolution and discretion are his salient points, and of 
these three the first is the most prominent. 

He possesses this to such a degree that his e.xterior is rough and 
uninviting ; but withal, back of this is one of the kindest and most 
sympathetic hearts, fearless, conscientious and honorable. He is 
able in all departments of law, but has become famous in his trials, 
both in jury and court cases. His independence has been the cause 
of few public honors. Only once has he become a public servant. 
He was elected to the city attorneyship of Minneapolis, and served 
the city well. He has an enviable reputation in lumber litigations 
throughout the Northwest. One of his great efforts was at the 
time when, as a specially retained counsel to assist the city attor- 
ney, he defended the city in the celebrated Manitoba bond case. 
His brother. Col. R. C. Benton, being counselor for the Manitoba 
Company, became his opponent in the case, and the legal tilts 
between them on the trial were terrific at times. It was largely 
through his assistance that the city was relieved from paying the 
bonds. Mr. Benton was married June 25, 1866, to Flora E. Had- 
ley of Hydepark, who with two children died before he left Ver- 
mont. November 24, 1874, he married Jeannette Graham at 
Minneapolis, and has three children — Crissie M., Harry G. and 
Mabel. 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 245 

CHARLES BOARDMAN DAGGETT. 

THE subject of this sketch was born in Farmington, Maine, 
August 31, 1843, and is the son of Samuel and Julia (Jones) 
Daggett. His grandfather and great-grandfather were both sea 
captains from Martha's Vineyard. Mr. Daggett commenced his 
education at the common schools and Farmington Hill Academy, 
and at the age of sixteen he entered Bowdoin College, from which 
he graduated with honor in the class of 1863. 

He went to Canada in 1864, and was principal of the Cassville 
High School one year, where he met Miss Anna M. Hill, whom he 
married March 3, 1865. He was also principal of the Barnston 
Academy. He studied law with Benjamin H. Steele of Derby, 
and was admitted a member of the Orleans couhty bar at its June 
term, 1S66, and the same year was admitted to practice in Franklin 
county, Maine. Soon after his admission he opened an office at 
Derby Line, where he remained about two years, in the main clos- 
ing up the unfinished business of Judge Steele, he having been 
appointed one of the judges of the supreme court. When he left 
there it was to go to Chicago, 111., where he experienced all the tri- 
als and hardships so many young lawyers meet in large cities, but 
perseverance and hard work won. He secured a very good busi- 
ness, and in 1871 he was appointed a justice of the peace on the 
south side, and held the office, a very lucrative one, for four years. 
He died of apoplexy November 6, 1875. Mr. Daggett was always 
very scholarly, and became a very thorough and well read lawyer, 
which well fitted him for the position of justice which he occupied. 



GEORGE N. DALE. 

By B. F. D. Cartenter, Eso. 

GEORGE N. DALE was born at Fairfax, Vt., February 19, 
1834, and is now fifty-two years of age. When he was but 
six months old his father removed his family to the town of Waits- 
field, Vt., where the subject of this article resided until he became 
twenty-one years of age. 

His early life may be aptly described by Lsaiah's striking Hebra- 
ism "First born of the poor," that is, inheriting as the first born 
32 



246 BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR 

did, his father's wealth, a double portion of poverty's negative 
endowments, but to one who inherited qualities worth bringing out 
these all proved sharp stimulants, so that by force of all these 
adverse circumstances young Dale at an early age was called upon 
by that necessity that knows no other law but that of unquestion- 
ing obedience, to take part in that incessant toil which falls to the 
lot of a very poor boy in the country. His boyhood may best be 
described as one of severe protracted physical labor, and he was 
very scantily furnished with the time to attend the common schools, 
his opportunities in this respect being "like angel's visits, few and 
far between." But these occasional and interrupted seasons at 
school in the winter time, and such other aids as the weekly news- 
papers, such books as he could borrow and iind time to read, and 
above all the ideal dreams of something better and more satisfying 
in the future than the dull tread-mill of that hard, unsatisfying life, 
had fitted him to take the first step of vantage ground, that of a 
teacher in the "district school." 

He very soon became famous for the order and discipline main- 
tained in his schools. Possessed of a grand physique, he could 
fight, if necessary, and when compelled to assert his individuality 
there never was any doubt as to the result, observing the advice of 
Polonious, " Beware of entrance to a quarrel ; but being in bear it, 
that the opposer may beware of thee." Hence he was called upon 
to manage and control what were termed the "hardest schools," 
where exuberant young America had compelled an ignominious 
capitulation on the part of pedagogue, but it is superogation to say 
that the subject of this sketch never surrendered, but successfully 
completed each contract of service to the mutual profit of teacher 
and pupil. 

Before arriving at this period in his life he had determined upon 
his future employment and life work, and toward the accomplish- 
ment of this purpose he had been making such progress as the cir- 
cumstances of his condition allowed. At some time he had attended 
a court, and had witnessed a hotly contested suit at law, and had 
drank in and become permeated with all its dramatic elements, the 
keen encounter, the array of contending forces, the gradual enroll- 
ing of the proof in the case, charges and counter charge, the appli- 
cation of legal principles to the mass of facts, assorting, arranging, 
and applying them to the various rights of the parties litigant, the 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 247 

verdict so bravely fought for ; and the keen black-eyed lad, cap- 
tivated and enchanted as by the perusal of an Arabian legend, 
makes choice of the profession of the law as that to which his future 
manhood should be devoted. 

The money earned by teaching in the winter seasons and by 
manual labor at other times was economized, and devoted to defray- 
ing the expenses of two or three years' instruction at Thetford 
Academy, and to the special study of the law. At the academy 
his limited means compelled him to pursue alone those branches of 
study which he regarded as the most necessary and beneficial in 
the practice of his chosen profession. 

After completing his course of study at the academy he com 
menced the study of the law in the office of Messrs. Dillingham & 
Durant, and having read law the required length of time he was 
admitted to practice at the March term, 1856, of the Washington 
county court. In December following he borrowed money to defray 
his expenses, and removed to the town of Guildhall and formed a 
partnership with Hon. William H. Hartshorn, which continued 
about two years. He soon became very much attached to the place 
and the people, and was rewarded with a growing and lucrative 
business until the year 1861. During the period last mentioned, 
Mr. Dale was state's attorney for the county of Esse.x most of the 
time. He was elected representative of the town of Guildhall in 
i860, for the purpose of opposing the j)roposed dismemberment of 
Essex county, and participated in tlie memorable session of the 
legislature in April, 1861. 

In June of the same year he was appointed deputy collector of 
customs for the port of Island Pond, and retained that position 
until 1864, when he was elected to the state senate, to which he 
was re-elected in 1865-6-7-8 and '69. In 1870 he was elected 
lieutenant-governor. In 1871 he was reappointed deputy collector 
of the port of Island Pond, which position he held until he resigned 
in 1882. In November, 1885, he was elected president of the Ver- 
mont Bar Association. 

In 1 866, upon the election of Judge Steele as a member of the 
supreme court, Mr. Dale had extended his law practice to the coun- 
ties of Caledonia and Orleans, and had become widely and favora- 
bly known as a sound, prompt, and reliable lawyer, and more 
especially as a jury advocate. He was substituted for Judge Steele 



248 BIOGRAPHY OF T}1E BAR 

in the copartnership of Steele & Robinson, under the name of 
Dale & Robinson, having offices at Derby Line and at Barton. 
Soon after he formed a partnership with the writer of this article, 
having an office at West Charleston, and continued these several 
business connections for quite a number of years, keeping his own 
office at Island Pond where he now resides, practicing his profes- 
sion. Mr. Dale may truly be said to be the architect of his own 
position ; starting from the point where he was a poor, friendless 
boy, his early struggles for improvement, thence to the numerous 
positions of public trust and honor which he has been called upon 
to fill, and as to the performing of their several duties, it is but the 
merest justice to say that they have all been well done, and adding 
to this the busy life of a lawyer in full practice, the review cannot 
but reflect credit upon him in every way. It is not flattery to 
say, that Mr. Dale has always, on every occasion, exhibited the 
finest sense of personal honor and honesty, and this joined to a 
frank, generous spirit and large-heartedness of manner has contrib- 
uted to his well earned personal popularity, and also has endeared 
him to all those who have been so fortunate as to esteem them- 
selves his friends. He is a powerful and effective speaker, and 
because of his magnetism of manner commands the attention of 
juries, because he makes his client's case his own, and brings to 
the trial of the cause a zeal and earnestness which could only come 
from a conviction that he was right. He has been successful in 
winning and holding the confidence of clients and of the commu- 
nity in the honesty, soundness, and safety of his counsel. 

The success which has crowned his efforts is the legitimate fruit 
of the constancy and diligence with which he has striven to perform 
each duty as it presented itself, and his life illustrates that wealth 
of opportunity which American laws and institutions affords for 
distinction to all those who, having selected a profession, follow it 
with steadiness of purpose, close application, and industry and hon- 
esty of practice. 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 249 

DAVID K. SIMONDS. 

DAVID K. SIMONDS was born April 5, 1839, at Peru, Ben- 
nington county, Vt., where liis parents, David and Anna 
(Byam) Simonds resided at that time. His father came from Gard- 
ner, Mass., about the year 1800, when he was a mere boy, his grand- 
father being one of the early settlers of Peru. David was educated 
at the common schools, and prepared for college at Burr Seminary, 
Manchester, Vt.; entered Middlebury College in 1858, and gradu- 
ated, fourth in his class, in 1862. During his college and prepara- 
tory course he paid his way to some extent by teaching. The fall 
term of his junior year in college he taught a high school at West- 
field, Orleans county, in company with Prof. M. F. Varney, and in 
the following winter taught at North Troy. In the spring of his 
senior year he commenced teaching the academy at Champlain, 
N. Y., and continued after his graduation until the summer of 1863. 
Notwithstanding he was obliged to take three absences from college 
to pay current expenses, he kept well up in his class. In August, 
1863, he went to Memphis, Tenn., and engaged as city editor on 
the Memphis Daily Bulletin, which position he filled about six 
months, and then enlisted in the Tennessee state troops, where he 
served a short time. He then served as war correspondent for the 
Chicago Tribune and St. Louis Republican until very near the 
close of the war. While teaching at Champlain, N. Y., he entered 
the law office of Charles E. Everst, and devoted what time he could 
spare to the study of the law, and after his return from the war he 
resumed the study of the law with Crane & Bisbee at Newport, 
Vt., and was admitted to the bar of Orleans county at the June 
term, 1866. He opened an office at Newport, and occupied himself 
in the practice of law until the summer of 1869. While at New- 
port he, in company with Royal Cummings, started the Newport 
Express, of which he was the editor. After about two years he 
sold his interest in the paper to D. M. Camp, the present editor 
and proprietor. 

The newspaper business being more to his taste than the law, in 
1869 he went to St. Johnsbury, and in company with E. L. Hovey 
started the Times, of which he was editor. The next year he sold 
out and went to Bennington, where he engaged as editor to the 
Banner. In 1870 he went to Manchester and purchased the Jour- 



250 BIOGRAPHY OF THE UAK 

nal, which he owns and edits at the present time. In 1873 he was 
elected town clerk, and has held the office since. In 1876 he was 
appointed postmaster of Manchester, and held the office during the 
republican administration, and he has also held the office of regis- 
ter of probate. 

Mr. Simonds has always taken a great interest in everything per- 
taining to schools and education, and has ever, not only with his 
paper, but personally, done all that he could for their advancement. 
In politics he has always been a stanch republican. Mr. Simonds 
was married in 1873 to Ellen L. Clark, daughter of Rev. Asa F. 
Clark of Leverett, Mass. They have two children, a son and 
daughter. 



SOLOMON W. DANE. 

SOLOMON W. DANE, the son of Joseph and Jane Wheeler 
Dane, was born in Danville, Vt., August 13, 1837. During his 
boyhood he was engaged, except while attending the district school, 
in assisting his father in the cultivation of the farm. As soon as 
he had the means he commenced the study of the law with Lewis 
H. Bisbee at Newport, and was admitted to the bar in that county 
at its December term, 1867, and immediately commenced the prac- 
tice of his profession at Newport. He was soon appointed deputy 
collector of customs and stationed at Newport, which office he held 
at the time of his death, March 30, 1870. Mr. Dane was married 
September 12, 1858, to Lucretia M. Sias, who, with two children, 
Ernest and Laura, survives him. 



GEORGE P. KEELER. 

GEORGE P. KEELER was born in Burlington, Chittenden 
county, Vt., February 4, 1843, the son of Philip and Eliza 
(Watson) Keeler. His education was obtained at the common 
schools and the Chittenden County Institute at Esse.x Center. 
Upon the breaking out of the rebellion, in September, 1862, young 
Keeler enlisted from Irasburgh, Vt., into the Allen Guards, after- 
ward Co. F, 1 1 th Vermont Volunteers, Heavy Artillery. In 1865 
he returned to Irasburgh, and went into the law office of John H. 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 25 I 

Prentiss, where he pursued the study of the law until the 25th day 
of December, i868, when he was admitted to the bar, and soon 
afterward opened an office at Craftsbury, Vt., for the practice of 
his profession. He remained there about a year, when he went 
West and settled at Waterloo, Jefferson county, Wis. He was 
soon elected city attorney for the city of Waterloo, an office which 
he held two years. In 1871 he went to Milbank, Lincoln county, 
Dakota, where he has been in active practice since. He has been 
district attorney for Lincoln county. Since Mr. Keeler has been 
in Dakota he has had a constantly increasing law business, in the 
management of which he has had excellent success. Mr. Keeler 
was married to Sarah A. Mead of Irasburgh, July 24, 1864, and 
has one child, Herbert James Keeler. 



ISRAEL A. MOULTON. 

THE subject of this sketch was born in Runmey, N. H., Janu- 
ary 2, 1844. He was the son of Jonathan and Betsey Moul- 
ton. His mother was from Campton, and her maiden name was 
Betsey Avery. Israel attended the common schools, and afterward 
the academy at Coventry. In 1863 he went to Baltimore, Vt., 
where he was engaged for a while in teaching, and while there mar- 
ried Lettie Wright of Grafton, Mass. Soon after his marriage he 
entered the office of Hon. W. D. Crane of Newport, and was 
admitted to the bar of Orleans county at the December term, 1868, 
and at once emigrated to Kansas and commenced the practice of 
his profession. He died November 25, 1873. 



LEONARD S. THOMPSON. 

LEONARD S. THOMPSON, son of Truman and Louisa 
Thompson, was born in Richmond, Vt., August 26, 1842. 
When eleven years of age his father moved to Stowe, Vt. He 
received his first schooling at the Stowe High School, and after- 
ward prepared for college at the Williston Academy, but owing to 
ill health did not take a collegiate course. In September, 1866, he 
moved to Irasburgh to teach school, and remained there in that 



252 BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR. 

capacity, teaching at Irasburgh Common thirteen terms. During 
this time he began the study of the law with Charles I. Vail of that 
place, and was admitted to the bar of Orleans county at its Septem- 
ber term, 1869, and the following F"ebruary commenced the practice 
of his profession at Irasburgh. He continued alone for about one 
year. At the end of this time he formed a copartnership with 
Laforrest H. Thompson, under the firm name of L. S. & L. H. 
Thompson. This continued until September, 1873, when he moved 
to Stowe, Vt. He opened an office, and engaged actively in the 
practice of the law until quite recently. He was state's attorney 
for the county of Lamoille for the biennial term of 1874 and 1875. 
He represented the town of Irasburgh in the legislature in 1872. 



CHARLES PARSONS ALLEN. 

CHARLES PARSONS ALLEN, the youngest son of the late 
Hon. Ira H. Allen, was born at Irasburgh, Vt., February 16, 
1844. He was a grandson of Gen. Ira Allen, the first treasurer of 
Vermont, to whom and his associates the town of Irasburgh was 
granted. The mother of Charles P. was Sarah C. Parsons of High- 
gate, Vt., a lady of fine character, rich mental endowments and rare 
worth. His father was largely identified with the development and 
prosperity of Irasburgh, and at his death, which occurred about the 
time Charles P. attained his majority, he left a very large estate. 

Charles P. was educated in the common schools, at Kimball 
Union Academy, Meriden, N. H., and at Norwich University. He 
read law with Heman S. Royce of St. Albans, Vt., and was admit- 
ted to the F"ranklin county bar. Until a year or two before his 
death he resided at Irasburgh, and down to the time of his death 
treated it as his residence. 

Having an ample fortune, he never engaged in the practice of 
his profession. Had the presence of poverty compelled him to rely 
upon his profession for his living, he, without doubt, would have 
succeeded in it, as he had many qualities of mind requisite for suc- 
cess at the bar. 

His time was largely devoted to the management of his estate in 
Vermont, and in the latter years of his life to the management of a 
large and valuable plantation which he had purchased in \'irginia. 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 253 

He was liberal in assisting in the maintenance of the churches, 
schools, and other public institutions of his native town. He was 
-a director in the Irasburgh National Bank of Orleans. He twice 
represented the town of Irasburgh in the legislature. 

In 1875 he married Lizzie Pulsifer of Peoria, 111., by whom he 
had one daughter — Lizzie Pulsifer Allen, now residing in Philadel- 
phia, Penn. 

For several years before his death, Mr. Allen suffered from a 
lung difficulty. Under the advice of physicians he spent, for his 
health, a winter in Cuba, and several winters in Florida and on his 
plantation in Virginia. He experienced temporary relief from such 
change of climate, but it soon became evident that he was doomed 
to be a victim of consumption, of which disease he died at St. 
Albans, Vt., May 30, 1S77. His wife survived him but a few 
months, dying of the same disease. They were both brought to 
Irasburgh for interment, and there sleep side by side in the family 
burial lot. 

Charles P. had many of the mental characteristics of his distin- 
guished ancestor — Gen. Ethan Allen, and was somewhat like him 
in many of his religious views. He is said to have been the last 
living male descendant of Gen. Ira Allen, of revolutionary fame, as 
well as of his father, Hon. Ira H. Allen. Although the name thus 
perishes from among the living, it will ever have a place in the his- 
tory of Vermont. 

WILLIAM WATERMAN EATON. 

THE subject of this sketch was born at Morristown, Vt., May 
9, 1847, the son of Gustavus and Fanny (Waterman) Eaton. 
His primary education was obtained at the Morrisville Academy 
and at Montpelier. He subsequently attended the Episcopal Insti- 
tute at Burlington. He studied law for a while with Brigham & 
Waterman at Hydepark, and then took a course at the Albany Law 
School, where he graduated. Upon his return he was admitted to 
the bar of Lamoille county, and commenced the practice of his pro- 
fession at Greensboro in the fall of 1869, where he remained some 
three or four years, when he removed to West Concord, Vt. He 
there engaged in the practice of the law until his death, which took 
place September 17, 1876. 
33 



254 BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR 

FRED OILMAN. 

THE subject of this biography was born in Piermont, Grafton 
county, N. H., the son of Zeeb and Navini (McNeal) Oilman. 
His early education was obtained at the common schools of his 
native town and Bradford Academy. Subsequently he attended 
Kimball Union Academy at Meriden, N. H., from which he gradu- 
ated in June, 1867. In the fall or early winter of 1867 he com- 
menced the study of the law with Powers & deed of Morristown, 
Vt., to which place his parents had removed. He remained there 
in the study of the law until he was admitted to the bar of Orleans 
county at the February term, A. D. 1870, Judge Benjamin H. Steele 
presiding, and in April of that year went West and located at Ack- 
ley, Hardin county, Iowa, for the practice of his profession. He 
remained there until February, 1886, when he removed to Newton, 
Iowa, and formed a copartnership for the practice of the law, under 
the firm name of Stahl Bros. & Oilman. . Mr. Oilman's practice has 
always been quite large, and it can truly be said that he has been 
very successful. Mr. Oilman was married June 2, 1873, to Miss 
Cora Burns of Ackley, and has three children — one son and two 
daughters — Lou Oilman, born November 4, 1874, F. Burns Oilman, 
born April 2, 1876, and Roy Oilman, born October 5, 1884. 



WILLIAM R. ROWELL. 

WILLIAM R. ROWELL, the son of Hon. A. J. and Lucy A. 
(Richardson) Rowell, was born at North Troy, Vt., March 18, 
1844. and attended the common school of that village and Missis- 
quoi Valley Academy. Subsequently he attended the " New Hamp- 
ton Institution " at Fairfa.x, Vt., for a year. In the winter of i860 
he taught school in Mansonville, P. O. In the spring of 1861 he 
was appointed a cadet at the United States Military Academy at 
West Point on the recommendation of Hon. Homer E. Royce, 
member of congress from the third congressional district of Ver- 
mont, and entered that institution in June of that year. In the 
winter following he resigned his cadetship, and entered the army 
with his fJither, Hon. A. J. Rowell, who was on the staff of Oen. 
Orover, and remained there until the fall of 1862, when he returned 



OKLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 255 

home. In the fall of 1863 he enli.sted as private in the 3d Battery 
of Light Artillery of Vermont Volunteers, and was mustered into 
service as first sergeant in January, 1864. Soon afterward the bat- 
tery was ordered to Camp Barry, a camp of instruction near Wash- 
ington, D. C, for drill, equipment, etc. In the early spring the 
battery was ordered to the front and attached to the 9th Army 
Corps in the Army of the Potomac, and remained in that army until 
the war ended with the surrender of Lee's army at Appomattox 
court-house. In July, 1864, young Rowell was promoted to be sec- 
ond lieutenant, and in the winter of 1864 was promoted to be first 
lieutenant of the battery, and commanded the battery a portion of 
the time in the winter and spring of 1865. 

Of their gallant conduct on the 25th of March, 1865, Capt. 
Romeo H. Start, in the adjutant and inspector-general's report of 
Vermont for 1865, appendix " C," page 50, says: "On the 25th of 
March it was decided to advance the picket line in front of Fort 
Fisher. The movement commenced near mid-day, and, contrary to 
the general opinion, the enemy contested the advance very stub- 
bornly. The advance of our infantry was so much annoyed and 
retarded by a battery nearly in front of Fisher and beyond the 
effective range of its guns, that it was decided to move out a sec- 
tion of artillery to silence this troublesome battery ; so a section of 
this battery from Fisher, under the command of Lieut. William R. 
Rowell, was ordered to move forward upon the skirmish line, and 
report to Brevet Brigadier-General Jas. M. Warner, commanding the 
troops of the 6th corps, operating in our front. The order was obeyed 
by Lieut. Rowell with commendable promptness and energy, under 
a severe artillery fire from the enfilading batteries of the enemy on 
the left of Fisher. In obedience to orders from Gen. Warner, 
Lieut. Rowell took up a position within seven hundred yards (and 
in advance of the skirmish line) from the enemy's battery in ques- 
tion, and at once opened fire, to which the enemy vigorously replied. 
This artillery duel lasted some twenty minutes, when the enemy's 
guns were silenced by the well directed fire of Rowell's guns, and 
the troops moved forward and occupied the desired position. The 
object of the movement having been attained, Lieut. Rowell was 
directed by Gen. Warner to return to Fort Fisher with his section. 
During this skirmish the section suffered no loss in men or mate- 
rial. The conduct of Lieut. Rowell and the men of his section on 



256 Blf)C.RAPHV OK THE HAR 

this occasion was such as to elicit from Gen. Warner a very compli- 
mentary notice for gallantry." On the 2d day of April a severe 
engagement took place in front of Fort Fisher, in which the same 
report says: "The behavior of officers and men during the en- 
tire day was splendid. Lieutenants Rowell and Perrin deserve spe- 
cial mention for coolness and gallant conduct during the entire day." 
At the close of the war Lieut. Rowell came home, and the follow- 
ing winter taught school in his native village. In November, 1866, 
he was appointed deputy collector of customs for the port of Troy 
by Gen. G. J. Stannard, collector, which office he held for three 
years, during which time he pursued the study of the law, under 
the direction of Hon. H. C. Wilson of Troy. In 1869 he resigned 
as collector of customs and attended the Albany Law School, tak- 
ing a full course and graduating from that school, and at the same 
time was admitted to the bar of the state of New York. In Sep- 
tember, 1870, he was admitted to the bar of Franklin county, and 
soon afterward entered upon the practice of his profession at 
Springfield, Vt., where he remained two years, one year of which 
he was in partnership with Hon. Samuel W. Porter. In the fall of 
1872 he returned to North Troy, and opened an office for the prac- 
tice of his profession. In 1876 he was elected state's attorney for 
the county of Orleans and held the office one biennial term, during 
which period there was a very large docket of criminal causes, 
including the celebrated Hayden murder case, which was tried and 
Hayden convicted during his term of office. He discharged the 
arduous duties of the office with great credit to himself and the 
satisfaction of the county. In the fall of 1880 he was again 
appointed deputy collector of customs for the port of North Troy, 
and about the same time was appointed aide-de-camp to Gov. Ros- 
well Farnham with the rank of colonel. The office of collector he 
held until 1886. Col. Rowell, during his long service, conducted 
the affairs of this office with fidelity. In private life, also, he sus- 
tains a manly, upright character, and is universally esteemed for 
his frank, honorable dealing. He. was married May 20, 18S6, to 
Miss Imogene Gleason of Methuen, Mas.s. 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 257 

MYRON HAWLEY FULLER. 

By Coi.. William R. Rowkll. 

MYRON HAWLEY FULLER, son of Warren and Emily 
R. Fuller, was born in Waterville, Vt., February 12, 1846. 
When he was about five years old his parents moved to North Troy. 
His preparatory course was taken at St. Johnsbury, and Meriden, 
N. H. While he was fitting for college he taught school in the 
town of Troy one or two terms. He entered Dartmouth College 
in 1S65, graduating from there in 1869, and was elected class poet 
of his class. During his collegiate course he spent his vacations 
in teaching singing schools in various places in Massachusetts. He 
studied law in the office of Edwards & Dickerman at Derby for about 
one year, and afterwards with Hon. John L. Spring of Lebanon, 
N. H., and was admitted to the bar in this county at the February 
term of the county court in 1871. He was offered a partnership 
in the practice of law with Hon. J. L. Spring, before referred to, 
but his health being poor his physicians advised a change of cli- 
mate, and he went to Kansas in the spring of 1871. He was at 
Topeka for a short time, but finally settled down at Wyandotte, 
and commenced the practice of law. He soon gained a good prac- 
tice, having had some assistance from the late Jesse Cooper, for- 
merly from this county, but who had been practicing for some 
years at Wyandotte, and was then about retiring from an extensive 
business. At a celebration on the 4th day of July, 1872, at Wyan- 
dotte, Mr. Fuller delivered an oration, which was very highly 
spoken of by the press of that vicinity. He had a decided genius 
for music. At the age of four years he could sing several tunes 
through correctly. When about twelve years of age his father sent 
him to St. Albans for three months, where he was under the tuition 
of Prof. D. A. Winslow, which is all the regular instruction he ever 
had in music. He was a fine singer, and was the leader of his 
class in college in all musical entertainments. April 28, 1871, he 
married Miss Emma C. Heaton, who went to Kansas with him. 
In 1873 his health having failed, he closed up his business and came 
East, and died l-'ebruary 15, 1874, of consumption, at his father's 
house in Newport. In early life he made a profession of faith 
in the Savior. He united with the Congregational church while in 
Wyandotte, and died peacefully in the triumphs of the Christian 
faith. 



258 mOGRAPHY OF THE BAR 

THEOPHILUS GROUT. 

THEOPHILUS GROUT, the eighth child of Josiah and Sophro- 
nia (Ayer) Grout, was born at Compton, P. Q., September 3, 
1848. His family is traceable as far back as 1640 through official 
records, which show the reputable positions occupied by branches 
of the family. In direct descent he was the fifth from his first 
American-born ancestor, Capt. John Grout, who was a surgeon in 
Watertown, Mass., as early as 1640. He left Jonathan, born March 
15, 1658, who settled in Sudbury, where he married Abigail Dix, 
by whom he had seven children. Of these John, born October 14, 
1704, was a successful lawyer. He married Joanna Boyngton and 
had children. His son Elijah was born October 29, 1732, settled 
in Charlestown, N. H., about 1766, served as commissary in the 
revolutionary war, was twice married, and was the father of eleven 
children. Theophilus, his son, born August 29, 1768, and the 
grandfather of our subject, was one of the first settlers of the town 
of Kirby, Vt., locating as early as 1792 on a tract of land in the 
extreme southwest part of the town on Moose river, which was 
ever after the family homestead. He was a prominent man in the 
public affairs of the town from the first; was a member of the legis- 
lature, justice of the peace, and a collector of United States revenue 
in different periods of his life. He married Joanna Willard, and 
was blessed with eleven children, and died in 1852. Josiah, son of 
Theophilus, was born October 20, 1805; married Sophronia Ayer, 
September 29, 1830, and soon moved to Compton, P. O., where he 
resided a few years and returned to Kirby, settling on the old home- 
stead, where he reared a family of ten children. 

The early history of our subject was like that of most boys in 
his position. He attended the common schools and the academies 
at Newbury, Mclndoes Falls and St. Johnsbury. He was obliged 
to teach to pay his way to some extent, and prior to 1870 had 
taught in Barton, Concord, Passumpsic and Brighton. In the 
spring of 1870 he commenced the study of the law in the office of 
Bisbee & Grout at Newport, and by close application passed a cred- 
itable examination, and was admitted to the bar of Orleans county 
at the September term, A. D. 1871, and September 14, 1871, was 
appointed inspector of customs at Newport. In about one year he 
formed a copartnership with his brother, Maj. Josiah Grout, for the 





't^'o^ 




ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 259 

practice of the law at Newport. This continued with a large and 
lucrative practice until the spring of 1875, when his brother removed 
to Chicago, 111., since which time he has practiced at Newport on 
his own account, with the exception of the one year, 1877, when 
he was in partnership with Charles A. Prouty. 

Mr. Grout was elected state's attorney for the county of Orleans 
for the biennial term of 1878 and 1879, and was elected represent- 
ative for the town of Newport in 1880 and 1881. In this body he 
took a leading and influential position, serving on the committee on 
revision of laws and on joint rules, championing and advocating 
some of the most important measures to become the laws of the 
state. He has made his profession a success, not only while with 
his brother, but since he has practiced alone, and he has one of the 
best law libraries in Northern Vermont. He is an affable, gener- 
ously endowed gentleman, and has won the esteem and confidence 
of those with whom he has associated. In religious matters he is 
an earnest and effective worker, being a zealous member of the 
Episcopal church, and to his liberality, energy and perseverance, as 
much as to that of any other, is that society indebted for their 
beautiful church edifice and their flourishing condition. In politics 
he has always been an ardent republican. He was married Novem- 
ber 25, 1873, to Ellen A. Black, an estimable lady from the South 
(Te.\as), and they have two children, Charles T. and Addie L. 
Grout. 



LYMAN MUNSON SHEDD. 

THE subject of this sketch was born in Boston, Mass., Decem- 
ber 8, 1842, the son of John Haskell and Eliza (Gilman) 
Shedd. His education was obtained at the public schools of Bos- 
ton, and subsequently at the Lawrence Academy at Groton, Mass., 
and in 1861 he passed a very commendatory examination for admis- 
sion to Harvard College ; but the war of the rebellion having 
begun, young Shedd determined to answer his country's call, and 
enlisted in the 60th Regiment of New York Volunteers, and was 
mustered into service September, 1861, as second lieutenant of Co. 
I of that regiment, where he remained until the latter part of 1862, 
when, on account of impaired health, he resigned. Upon his return 
to Boston he commenced reading law, and closely applied himself 



260 BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR. 

to its study until he came to Vermont, and entered the office of 
Edwards & Dickerman at Derby. At the September term, A. D. 
1 87 1, he was admitted to the bar, and very soon commenced the 
practice of his profession at Newport. He remained but a short 
time, and then he removed to Coventry, where he now resides. 



LAFORREST H. THOMPSON. 

By Hon. H. Henry Powers. 

LAFORREST HOLMAN THOMPSON, son of Levi S. and 
Irene (Hodgkins) Thompson, and the oldest of a family of 
eight children, was born at Bakersfield, Vt., January 6, 1848. In 
the paternal line he is of Scotch-Irish descent, and a family tradi- 
tion declares that his ancestry sustained a collateral relationship 
with Mary, Queen of Scots, and that in old baronial times the fam- 
ily coat of arms bore the motto " D/nii spiro, spcro." However this 
fact may be, the subject of this notice, while ignoring all pride of 
ancestry, especially that which connected him with the Scottish 
Queen, has in his career been actuated by the spirit of the beauti- 
ful sentiment expressed in the ancestral family motto. 

His grandfather Thompson was a man highly esteemed by his 
townsmen, and was the first representative of the town of Topsham, 
Vt., in the legislatures of 1801 and 1802. 

His grandfather Hodgkins was one of the early settlers of Bel- 
videre, Vt., and served in the war of 18 12. 

When Laforrest was about seven years of age his father moved 
from Bakersfield to Cambridge, Vt., and lived there one year; 
thence he moved to Potton, Broome county, P. Q., and engaged in 
farmin<r, his son Laforrest livinfr with him for the ne.xt eleven 
years, during which time his mother, who was a most excellent and 
devoted mother, died. His father while living, in Canada, divided his 
attention between farming and preaching. He was a licensed min- 
ister of the Christian denomination, sometimes called the Church 
of the Disciples, which was the denomination to which President 
Garfield belonged. He was also a good stone mason. He was, 
notwithstanding his various pursuits, and perhaps because of them, 
in straightened pecuniary circumstances, and so unable to give his 
large family of children many social or educational advantages. 





•yi' 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 26l 

He was, however, a man of great intellectual strength, and was 
especially gifted in the power of invective, which he used with 
marked skill against the moral and conventional sins of the day. 

During his residence in Canada the southern rebellion broke out. 
Although Laforrest had livedv in Canada during that formative 
period in life when the child is father of the man, and the seeds of 
political faith are generally rooted, yet he had read Uncle Tom's 
Cabin, and thereby became a pronounced abolitionist of the aggress- 
ive type, rejoicing at John Brown's courageous raid, and mourning 
his death as the loss of a Christian martyr. At the outbreak of the 
war he manifested his boyish loyalty to the Union cause by erect- 
ing in his father's door-yard a flag-staff, from which flaunted the 
stars and stripes during the whole war. The neighborhood was 
full of secession sympathizers, and one of them thought to test the 
youngster's mettle by ordering him to take down that "Yankee 
rag." But young Thompson had provided himself with forty rounds 
of cobble stones for just such occasions, and in tones and manner 
that carried conviction to the heart of the invading Englishman, 
gave him to understand that the man who meddled with that flag 
would get a taste of Yankee cobbles that he would remember to 
the day of his death, whereupon the Englishman beat a hasty 
retreat. 

The educational advantages of Mr. Thompson's boyhood were 
meager. The schools open to him till he was fifteen were poor, 
and hardly deserved the name. He early acquired a taste for gen- 
eral reading, which has increased with increasing years and oppor- 
tunities. When about twelve years of age he borrowed and read a 
History of the World, Histories of England and the United States, 
Gibbon's Decline and Fall, Macaulay's Essays, Bunyan's Pilgrim's 
Progress and some other works, which, though of rather heavy text 
for youthful digestion, gave him a lead to the storehouses of histor- 
ical facts, as well as a discipline in style, in reasoning, and in con- 
densed recital, which has served him a most useful purpose in his 
after life. 

While working on his father's farm he managed by the sale of 
spruce gum, muskrat skins, and other like articles of boyish com- 
merce, to buy Greenleaf's Arithmetic, Robinson's Algebra, and a 
few other books which he mastered during his morning, evening, 
and other leisure hours. His father was not impressed with the 

34 



262 BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR 

conviction that an acquired education was of practical value, and 
gave his son no encouragement in his desire to acquire one. In 
the fall of 1865 he determined to make a lawyer of himself, and 
though in quite poor health, he commenced a course of a year's 
study at the Lamoille County Grammar School at Johnson, and 
made excellent progress in his studies. In 1867 and 1868 he taught 
school in Craftsbury a part of the time, and in the spring of 1868 
entered Kimball Union Academy at Meriden, N. H. For two 
years he had paid his way by teaching and doing such work as 
offered itself, and in February, 1868, through the generosity of 
Hon. James W. Simpson of East Craftsbury, who had observed the 
ambition of young Thompson to secure a liberal education, the way 
was opened to him to take a collegiate course, but in 1869, when fit- 
ted to enter college, he was forced, by medical advice, to abandon 
his purpose on account of his frail health. He has, however, taken 
the ne.xt best course by giving his days and nights, so far as possi- 
ble, to an extended study in English belles-lettres. 

After giving up his college course he supported himself by teach- 
ing in Craftsbury and Irasburgh, meantime reading law as best he 
might. He never matriculated as a student in the office of an attor- 
ney, but borrowed books and followed the advice of attorneys as to 
his reading. He is emphatically a self-made man and a self-made 
lawyer, and by common consent the work in both aspects was well 
done. In March, 1871, he was admitted to the bar in Orleans 
county, having at that time only heard two cases argued in court, 
and knowing nothing of court procedure. He formed a partnership 
with L. S. Thompson and began the practice of his profession at 
Irasburgh, where he has since continuously resided. The firm of 
L. S. & L. H. Thompson continued about two years. Since then 
his business has rapidly increased, and for several years no attorney 
in Northern Vermont has had a larger or better clientage. He has 
been engaged in all the more important cases, civil and criminal, in 
Orleans county, and in many in adjoining counties. He brings to 
his professional work an untiring industry in his preparation and a 
masterly tact in the details of the trial, never losing sight of the 
exact legal aspect of his case, nor forgetting to develop the facts of 
a case in harmony with the law of it. He has a ready flow of pure 
Saxon English language, a vivid imagination, and an inherited and 
masterly power of invective, which enables him to marsiial his facts 



OKI.KANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 263 

most forcibly to the mind of the average juror. Before the court 
he argues law questions with judicial fairness and logical acuteness. 

Among the more important cases which he has tried in the court 
of last resort may be mentioned Baldwin, assignee vs. Buswell, 
involving the constitutionality of the insolvency law of Vermont; 
Wade 7.f. Pulsifer, reported in the 54th Vermont Reports, involving 
the validity of a gift from a sister to her brother, standing in a rela- 
tion of confidence and trust, and the recent case of State 7's. Malo- 
ney for publishing a libel upon Chief Justice Royce. No more 
exhaustive or logical brief has been presented to the supreme court 
for years than the one prepared by him in the Wade-Pulsifer case. 

Mr. Thompson was state's attorney for Orleans county in the 
years 1874 and 1875. In 1876 he was elected judge of probate for 
that district, and held the office till June, 1881, when he resigned 
on account of the demands of his professional business. In 1880 
and 1882 he represented Irasburgh in the legislature, and served 
upon the most important committees in the house. In 1884 he was 
a senator from Orleans county and president />ro tern of the senate. 
At this session a large number of his brother members gave him 
their votes as a candidate for a judgeship upon the bench of the 
supreme court. Judge Thompson has filled many other positions 
of trust in town and county. 

He was married August 24, 1869, to Mary Eliza, daughter of 
Hon. A. P. Button of Craftsbury, by whom he had four children. 
Mrs. Thompson died March 29, 18S1, and Judge Thompson subse- 
quently married Helen C. Kinney, by whom he has had two children. 



WILLARD W. MILES. 

By Theoi'Hilus Grout, Esq. 

WILLARD W. MILES, son of Orin and Eunice (Clark) 
Miles, was born in Albany, Vt., February 6, 1845. 
Edward Miles, the grandfather of Willard, moved from the town 
of Dover, N. H., about 18 15, and settled in Danville, Vt., at which 
time Orin was about three years old. 

Willard's mother's people came from New Hampshire, and were 
among the early settlers of St. Johnsbury, Vt. 



264 rjlO(;KAPHY OF THE BAR 

In about 1835 the father of our subject was married, and soon 
after moved on to a farm in Albany, Vt., which was afterwards 
known as " Miles' Hill." About 1842 Willard's grandfather also 
moved on to a farm in Albany, near where his father lived. 

Willard attended the common schools of his native town, and 
quite early showed a great taste for study. At the age of about 
sixteen he entered the academy at Barnston, P. O., and attended 
two years, and soon after attended the academy at Hatley, P. O., 
one year, and on his return to Vermont kept up his studies and 
recited to the Rev. S. K. B. Perkins at Glover, Vt., until he was 
fitted for college. In 1866 he entered the office of Charles I. Vail 
at Irasburgh, and pursued the study of law until 1868, except dur- 
ing the falls of 18^7 and 1868, when he taught the academy at West 
Albany, Vt. In April, 1869, he went West, intending to take a 
course of law at Ann Arbor, Mich., Law School, and settle in the 
West for the practice of his profession; but soon after reaching 
there he had the misfortune to break his leg, and in August, 1869, 
returned to Vermont. By reason of his long confinement with his 
broken limb his health became much impaired, and he did not again 
resume the study of law until the fall of 1871, when he entered the 
oflice of Gen. William W. Grout at Barton, Vt., and was admitted 
to the bar of Orleans county at the September term, A. D. 1872, 
and in June, 1S73, opened an ofifice at North Craftsbury, Vt., for 
the practice of his profession. 

In September, 1872, and before he was admitted to the bar, he 
was elected for the biennial term of 1872 and 1873 to represent the 
town of Albany in the legislature of Vermont, and, although young, 
took a leading position, serving on the committee on elections. 

He taught the Craftsbury Academy in the fall of 1874 and spring 
of 1875, and with this exception has practiced his profession since 
he was admitted to the bar. He was elected to represent the town 
of Craftsbury in the Vermont Legislature for the biennial term of 
1878 and 1879, and served on the committee on judiciary, and was 
one of the leading members of that body. He was elected clerk of 
the town of Craftsbury in 1875, and continuously re-elected as long 
as he resided in the town. Mr. Miles had a good practice while in 
Craftsbury, and enjoyed the confidence and esteem of his townsmen. 

In April, 1881, he moved from Craftsbury to Barton, Vt., and 
formed a partnership with Gen. William W. Grout, under the firm 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 265 

name of Grout & Miles, which still exists. This is one of the lead- 
ing firms of Orleans county, and has always had a large and lucra- 
tive practice. Mr. Miles has been a close student and is a good 
lawyer. He is a pleasant, companionable man, generous, unselfish, 
and as true to his friends as the needle to the pole. 

In politics he has always been a republican. In religion he is a 
Congregationalist, being a consistent member of that church. 

In September, 1872, he married Miss Ellen M. Dow, and they 
have three children — Ida M., Mabel A. and Orin L. 



AMOS JOHNSON SHURTLEFF. 

AMOS JOHNSON SHURTLEFF was born in Cato, Cayuga 
county, N. Y. His father, Solon Shurtleff, was a physician, 
and after a time located at Hatley,P. O., where the youth and early 
manhood of our subject was spent. He acquired his education at 
the common schools and Hatley Academy. Young Shurtleff was 
always studious in his habits. The hours of study in school were 
always a pleasure rather than a task, and he was sorry when they 
were over. He early evinced a liking for the profession of law, and 
about the time of his majority commenced reading law with Col. 
N. T. Sheafe at Derby Line, and was admitted to the bar of Orleans 
county at the February term, A. D. 1872, and very soon opened an 
office at South Troy for the practice of his profession. Wishing 
for a broader field than this agricultural town afforded him, in 1876 
he removed to St. Johnsbury, and in 1881 to Concord, N. H., 
becoming a member of the firm of Tappan, Albin & Shurtleff. 
While he was in St. Johnsbury he followed the business of a ste- 
nographer to some e.xtent, reporting for several of the county 
courts, a calling in which he was very proficient. In 1882 he was 
appointed clerk of the Merrimack County Court, a position which 
he still continues to hold. He was married March, 1882, to Lou D. 
Robinson of Swanton, Vt. 



266 BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR 

SANFORD HENRY STEELE. 

THE subject of this sketch was born in Stanstead, P. Q., No- 
vember 6, 1847, the son of Sanford and Mary (Hinman) Steele 
and a brother of Judge Benjamin H. Steele. He remained at home 
and attended the school of his native district and at Derby Line un- 
til he was fifteen years of age, when he became clerk in the post- 
office at Derby Line, where his brother, Benjamin H. Steele, was 
postmaster. In the winter of 1864 and 1865 he taught the village 
school at Derby Line, and in the following year entered the Jesuit 
College in Montreal, P. Q., where he was at the same time student 
and tutor. In the spring of 1867 he entered Dartmouth College, 
and graduated in 1870 with honor. During his college course he 
taught one winter at Newport, and also taught the academy at Bar- 
ton one term. He spent one winter in Washington as clerk of the 
house committee on revision of the laws. In 1871 he entered the 
office of his brother, Judge Steele, at Hartland for the study of 
the law, and at the February term, 1872, passed a very meritorious 
examination, and was admitted a member of the bar of Orleans, 
his favorite county. He very soon went to the city of New York, 
where he spent one year in close study to familiarize himself with 
the laws and practice of that state, and in 1873 he opened an office 
and commenced practice for himself, and is now one of the firm of 
Brilsen & Steele, No. 229 Broadway, N. Y. Having a thorough 
knowledge of law and its bearings upon facts and principles, he 
makes an able and safe counselor, painstaking and sedulous in form- 
ing an opinion in the case presented by his client. 

He is a man of thorough integrity, entirely responsible as a law- 
yer and a man. His firm has been engaged in many important 
cases, and always to their credit. He has always applied himself 
closely to his profession, and had nothing to do with politics. He 
is one of the directors of the Chatham National Bank. In June, 
1876, he married Carrie Hinman, eldest daughter of Ransome B. 
Hinman of Brooklyn, where he resides. They have had two chil- 
dren, one of which, a daughter, is still living. 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 267 

FREDERICK W. BALDWIN. 

By Hon. H. Henrv Powers. 

FREDERICK W. BALDWIN was bom at Lowell, Vt., Sep- 
tember 29, 1848. He is of English descent. This branch of 
the Baldwin family is descendant from John Baldwin, who appears 
in Billerica, Mass., as early as 1655, and who came from Hertford- 
shire, England, about 1640. He married Mary Richardson, by 
whom he had nine children. He was made "freeman" in 1670, 
and died in 1687. His sixth child, Thomas, born in Billerica, March 
26, 1672, and known as "Ensign Thomas," married and became the 
father of eight children, of whom Joseph, born in Billerica, Septem- 
ber 14, 1702, was the second. It appears that he secured, by his 
father's will, lands in Townsend, Mass. He married and settled 
there, and became the father of Joseph, Jr., his eldest son, born 
about 1729. Joseph, Jr., was blessed with a family of eight chil- 
dren. Thomas, his youngest child, was born at Townsend, Novem- 
ber 10, 1768. He married Elizabeth Davis of Chelmsford, Mass., 
and settled on a farm in Cavendish, Vt., where he reared a family 
of nine children. Asa, their fifth child, born at Cavendish, June 
28, 1803, married Roselinda Shedd, December 3, 1833, and removed 
to the new town of Lowell in Orleans county. There he com- 
menced to hew a farm out of the wilderness. Privation and hard- 
ship were his constant companions. But the heart and hand of the 
sturdy pioneer were of unfailing strength, and waving fields of grain 
soon took the place of the unbroken forest. At the time of his 
death, which took place January 27, 1875, he was occupying the 
same farm where he first located, one of the best homes in the town. 
He was an energetic, substantial citizen, and held the office of cap- 
tain of the militia company of the section. He had two children, 
our subject being the youngest, and only son. 

Frederick was brought uiron his father's farm, and enjoyed only 
such advantages for education as the average Vermont farmer gives 
his children. Being, however, of an obser\-ant and practical turn 
of mind, he acquired much solid and useful information which is 
not found in school books, but which is in\'aluable in the daily rou- 
tine of professional life. 

He attended the district schools in his native town until he was 
seventeen years of age, and then for a few years attendetl, a term 



268 BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR. 

or two at a time, the grammar school at Westfield, the Normal 
school at Johnson, and the Vermont Conference Seminary at Mont- 
pelier, usually interrupting the continuity of his studies by teaching 
school in the winter. In 1870 he entered the law office of Powers 
& Gleed at Morrisville, and was admitted to the bar in December, 
1872, and soon after formed a partnership with Gen. William W. 
Grout at Barton, which continued two years. Since the dissolution 
of the firm of Grout & Baldwin, Mr. Baldwin has been in the suc- 
cessful practice of his profession at Barton, and has had a large 
clientage in Orleans and Caledonia counties. 

He brings to his professional work a strong practical mind, which 
enables him to forecast results better than many men who display 
more apparent haste and energy, but who can never see but one 
side to a case. Mr. Baldwin's professional aim is to reach the best 
result for his client. In many cases where others would advise a 
suit he advises a compromise, thus often saving defeat as well as 
large expense. By this course he has gained the confidence of liti- 
gants, who see in him a disposition to save them expense where 
others would recklessly incur it. But when engaged in a cause he 
gives to its preparation and trial the most thorough and efficient 
work. He has been connected with many very important trials in 
court, among which may be noted the case of Frederick W. Baldwin, 
assignee in insolvency vs. James Buswell, which involved the con- 
stitutionality of the insolvency law of Vermont, and which he ably 
argued before the full bench at the general term, and which is 
reported in the 52d Vermont Reports; also the case of Selectmen 
of Glover vs. McGaffey, involving an important question in the law 
of water rights, reported in 55 Vt. 171. He was connected with a 
series of pauper causes between the towns of Barton and Glover. 

In all this important litigation he was successful. He has been 
admitted to practice in both the state and federal courts in this 
state. 

He has enjoyed a liberal measure of political preferment, though 
he is not exposed to the charge of political ambition. He was 
assistant secretary of the state senate in 1872, and secretary of the 
same in 1874, 1876 and 1878. Was state's attorney for Orleans 
county in 1880 and 1881, and was the Orleans county member of 
the Republican State Central Committee in 1884 and 1885, and at 
the last state convention was chosen for 1886 and 1887. When the 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 269 

committee organized he was made its secretary and treasurer. He 
was married to Susan M. Grout, a sister of Gen. Grout, September 
24, 1873, by whom he has one child, Edward Grout Baldwin. Mrs. 
Baldwin died in 1876, and October 28, 1878, Mr. Baldwin married 
Susan M. Hibbard of Brooklyn, N. Y. 



L. H. NICHOLS. 

By HiiN. H. C. WII.SON. 

THE subject of this sketch was born in Westford, Vt., and 
when quite young his father and family moved to Underbill, 
Vt., where he attended the common school of the town, and after- 
wards fitted for college at the academy, expecting to enter the Uni- 
versity of Vermont as soon as he could earn means to defray his 
expenses there. With that end in view he commenced teaching, 
and proved an able and efficient teacher, having the very best of 
success. He followed school-teaching for three or four years, finally 
decided to fit himself for the law, and entered the law office of H. 
C. Wilson at North Troy in the fall of 1867, where he remained, 
teaching a portion of the time until the September term, A. D. 
1872, when he was admitted to the Orleans County Bar. He was 
a young man of good character and a close student, gentlemanly 
and courteous to all, and a very easy and fluent speaker. After his 
admission to the bar he left the county for the West, with a bright 
prospect before him. He first went to Clinton, Iowa, but remained 
there but a short time. From there he went to San Francisco, Cal., 
and soon afterwards formed a copartnership with one of the leading 
lawyers of that city, and their firm ranks among the ablest and 
best, and it can in truth be said that Mr. Nichols has gained that 
success which inevitably follows continued application of honest 
effort to the accomplishment of an honest purpose. 



PELEG REDFIELD KENDALL. 

By Hon. Timothv P. Rehkikm). 

PELEG REDFIELD KENDALL was the son of Dr. Samuel 
S. and Sarah Abby Redfield Kendall, and was born at Coven- 
try, Vt., November 24, 1848. He was an apt and ready scholar. 
He made creditable progress in the common schools in education, 

35 



270 BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR 

and was page in the house of representatives during the session of 
i860. During the war the call and clangor "to arms " so stirred 
his young blo.od that he enlisted as a soldier in 1863, and was mus- 
tered in as corporal in Co. L of the nth Vermont Volunteers, and 
served until August, 1865. When he came home from the war his 
instincts and aspirations gravitated towards college life, and he fit- 
ted for college in the academies at Barton, Peacham, and under Mr. 
Gorham at Montpelier. He entered Dartmouth College in the 
class of 1867, and graduated with his class in the summer of 1871. 
He studied the profession of law in the office of Edwards & Dick- 
erman at Newport, and was admitted to the bar at the September 
term, 1873, of Orleans county court, and opened an office for prac- 
tice at Barton Landing. After about two years he removed to 
Rutland, where he continues to reside in the practice of his pro- 
fession. He was state's attorney for Rutland county from 1884 to 
1886. His residence in Rutland necessarily threw him into new 
relations to the bar, and into practice with veterans who were 
among the leading lawyers of the state. This brought to his mind 
new suggestions and new incentives, and he resolved, so far as in 
him lay, to make himself a good lawyer, and not be content with 
the rough and tumble chances in the tilt of the profession. He 
knew in that profession that success or eminence was not attained 
by favor or chance, but, as a rule, is won, if at all, by industry and 
hard work. He purchased a well selected library, in which he 
studied the origin and sources of the common law of England, and 
especially the axioms and principles that equity practice had en- 
grafted upon it; and by careful study equipped himself for useful 
and successful practice. 

A very brilliant scholar, a graduate of his A/ma Mater, wrote 
in his classical text books the words, as a guiding motto, " At/ins 
ibuiii qui summa niiiuiiier" which in the vernacular would indicate 
that in climbing the hill they reach the highest who strive for the 
summit. 

He learned that the true and best service of the advocate was by 
careful study to understand the case himself, and thus by a brief 
statement of the facts of the case, and the law involved in it, the 
court would see that he was master of it, and in a condition to aid 
the court or jury in solving the problems of the case to be tried, 
and as he became useful to the court, he was also to his client. 




Ai//^<'C.L Act^ 



6 



^^^6 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 2^1 

As state's attorney for the great county of Rutland, he was called 
upon to examine and try many cases of great importance, as well 
to the parties involved as to the public, and requiring discrimination 
and legal tact. In that he has been successful, and won the confi- 
dence of the court and of the public. 

There is now open to him a broad field, somewhat sterile for legal 
plants — with the assured prospect, if he is laborious and avoids pol- 
itics — of attaining in his profession, in the end, success and dis- 
tinction. 



JOHN WESLEY ERWIN. 

THE subject of this sketch was born in Sheldon, Franklin coun- 
ty, Vt., April 5, 1840, and is the son of Ralph and Jane (Riley) 
Erwin. Ralph, the father of our subject, immigrated from Ireland 
with his elder brother when but si.xteen years of age, and settled in 
Sheldon, where he lived until 1847, when he moved to Highgate, 
and afterwards to Newport, where he died. Mr. Erwin was edu- 
cated at the common schools of his native town, and was attending 
the academy at St. Albans when the war of the rebellion broke out. 
He at once enlisted as a private in the ist Vermont Cavalry, Co. B, 
and was mustered into service September, 1861. In 1862 he was 
made quartermaster-sergeant. In the sharp cavalry engagement at 
Hagerstown, Md., July 6, 1863, young Erwin had his horse shot 
from under him, and he was taken prisoner. He was taken to Belle 
Island, where he was kept five months, with the exception of about 
three weeks in the hospital at Richmond, after he had become so 
sick and weak he could not live longer in the prison. In Septem- 
ber, 1864, he was discharged and returned to his native state, but 
with health so impaired it was not until 1870 that he was able 
to accomplish anything, with the exception of looking after a farm 
he owned in Troy, Vt. In 1870 he entered the office of Josiah 
Grout at Newport for the study of the law, and was admitted to the 
bar of Orleans county at its September term, A. D. 1874, and com- 
menced the practice of his profession at Derby Center, where he 
has since resided. 



BIOfiRAPHY OF THE BAR 



NELSON RAND. 



NELSON RAND was born in Greensboro, Vt., March 7, 1824. 
His father, Ezekiel Rand from Rindge, and his mother, Mary 
Stone from Fitzwilliam, N. H., were married, and settled about the 
year 1800 in the very new settlement of Greensboro, Vt., where 
they were prospered, and raised a family of ten children. 

Nelson's education was obtained at the school of his native dis- 
trict and Bakersfield Academy. In 1843, having concluded to 
become a lawyer, he entered the office of Jasper Rand, an older 
brother, at West Berkshire, where he remained three years, but 
unfortunately for him when he was nearly fitted for admission to 
the bar he became discontented, and hoping to secure a vocation 
that would pay greater profits financially, he went to Hardwick and 
entered a store, where he remained about two years. He then went 
to Craftsbury and entered the firm of Blaisdell, Delano & Co. He 
remained in trade there in this firm, the firm of Blasdell & Rand, 
and alone, until about 1870, and from 1852 to i860 was postmaster 
at South Craftsbury, and during all this time was doing legal lousi- 
ness to some extent for the people of Craftsbury and vicinity. In 
1870 this branch of his business had grown so, and there was such 
a demand for his services as a lawyer, that he opened an office and 
gave his time to this work, and at the September term, A. D. 1874, 
he was admitted a member of the bar of Orleans county, and has 
been in active practice at Craftsbury since. Although Mr. Rand 
came to the bar late in life, he was better fitted for his professional 
duties than many who started earlier. His large acquaintance with 
men and things while in business, coupled with his experience in 
legal matters, made him a good and reliable adviser and counselor. 
He has fine social qualities, and is esteemed by all who know him 
as a cordial, genial gentleman. In politics Mr. Rand has always 
been an ardent democrat, and has several times been the nominee 
of his party for important offices. He was married June 6, 1849, to 
Julia Ann Williams. 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 2/3 

WALLACE I. ROBINSON. 

WALLACE I. ROBINSON was born at Barlon, Vt., January 
12, 1S50, and is the son of Amos C. and Eliza S. Robinson, 
the latter a daughter of Dr. F. W. Adams, an able physician of 
Barton, and afterwards of Monlpelier, where he died. 

His father owned and carried on what was known as the "depot 
store. He, with his sons, carried on a large and flourishing whole- 
sale and retail business, and had at the time of his death amassed 
a goodly competence for this section of the country. Jasper Rob- 
inson, the paternal grandfather of our subject, was a successful mer- 
chant at Brownington, Vt., and one of its prominent men. He 
represented Brownington in the general assembly in 1825-7-8, and 
was elected in 1S31, but served in the council and was a judge of 
Orleans county court in 1828-29-31-32 and councillor until 1835. 

At the common schools of his native town, Newbury Academy, 
Norwich University and Dartmouth College, Wallace I. obtained a 
thorough education, and in 1870 entered the office of J. B. Robin- 
son, Esq., of Barton, for the study of the law. He was admitted 
to the bar of Orleans county at the September term, 1874. About 
the time of his admission to the bar his former preceptor, J. B. Rob- 
inson, deceased, and his office, and business to some e.xtent, were 
succeeded to by our subject. In the succeeding two years, Mr. 
Robinson obtained a large and thriving business for one just start- 
ing out in the profession. 

March 16, 1876, young Robinson's father died, and he took his 
place in the old store and firm, the new firm being made up of his 
brother Charles A. Robinson and himself, under the firm name of 
Robinson Brothers. They did a large and successful business until 
1878, when they sold out, since which time Mr. Robinson has been 
engaged as administrator in closing up several estates, and also as 
agent for the Hartford Life and Annuity Insurance Company of 
Hartford, Conn. He was married July 26, 1876, to Lucy M. Reed, 
and has one son, Amos Reed Robinson. 



274 BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR 

HOMER E. POWELL. 

HOMER E. POWELL was born at Richford, Vt., May 4, 185 1. 
The first of the Powell patronymic who settled in Vermont 
was Rowland Powell, who came from Brimfield, Mass., and settled 
in Hartford, Vt., where he remained a few years and removed to 
Sheldon. Bradford Powell, son of Rowland, born in Brimfield in 
1775, moved into Richford as early as 1799, his name appearing on 
the records as one of the first listers. He was an active citizen, 
and took a prominent part in the public affairs of the town, and 
was deputy collector of customs for a while. He married Clarissa 
Goff from Deerfield, Mass., in April, 1803, and settled and carried 
on a farm; he died June 11, 1820. Hermon Powell, father of our 
subject, was born at Richford, December 28, 1809, and who died at 
Fairfield, September 14, 1885, was a farmer, and lived at Richford 
and Fairfield the greater part of his life. January i, 1838, he mar- 
ried Julia S. White, who was born in Sheldon, March 30, 181 2, and 
who died at Richford, July 23, 18S0. 

Homer E. obtained at the common schools, " New Hampton 
Institution "at Fairfa.x, and Vermont Conference Seminary at Mont- 
pelier, a very good education. In 1870 he commenced the study of 
the law with his brother, Hon. E. Henry Powell at Richford, but 
soon accepted a position as principal of the Richford Graded School, 
where he remained one year. He then went West and engaged in 
teaching at Schuyler, Neb., a portion of the time also keeping up 
his law studies somewhat. In 1874 he returned to Vermont, and 
again entered the office of his brother, and at the April term, 1875, 
of the Franklin county court was admitted to the bar. The year 
following he was in partnership with E. Henry Powell in the prac- 
tice of his profession at Richford. In the spring of 1876 he moved 
to South Troy, where he remained until the fall of 1878, when he 
went to Milton, where he now resides in the active practice of the 
law. For the short time that he was in the county of Orleans 
he succeeded well as an attorney. Mr. Powell was married April 
21, 1880, to Lucia B. Witters of Milton, and has three children. 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 2/5 

FRANK E. ALFRED. 

FRANK E. ALP'RED, the son of Samuel D. and Polly (Smith) 
Alfred, was born in Fairfax, Vt., February 25, 1853. Benja- 
min Alfred, the youngest son of John Alfred, and the grandfather 
of our subject, was born in Hartford, Conn., March 26, 1769. He 
married Elizabeth Chapin, January 25, 1795, and they settled in 
West Springfield, Mass., but in 1808 they moved to VVestfield, 
where they afterward lived. Samuel Dwight Alfred, their son, was 
born in VVestfield, June 14, 1S04. In 1824 he settled in Lansing- 
burg, N. Y., but in 1831 he removed to Berkshire, Vt. On the 
25th day of November, 1832, at Berkshire, he was married to Polly 
Smith, and in 1842 they removed to Fairfa.x, where they now reside. 
His occupation was that of a merchant. 

Frank E. obtained his primary education at the school of his 
native district, and afterward attended the New Hampton Institu- 
tion at Fairfax, and but for sickness would have graduated there in 
June, 1873. In 1874 he commenced the study of the law with 
Edson & Rand at St. Albans. In September, 1874, he entered the 
law department of Harvard College, fnom which he graduated in 
June, 1876, and was admitted a member of the Suffolk county bar. 
He returned to Vermont, and at the September term of the P"rank- 
lin county court was made a member of that bar. November i of 
that year he went to Newport and entered the office of W. D. 
Crane, and in one year from that time was admitted into partner- 
ship with him, forming the now leading and well known law firm of 
Crane & Alfred. August 22, 1878, Mr. Alfred was admitted a 
member of the Supreme Court of the state, and February 25, 1879, 
a member of the United States Circuit Court. November 7, 1877, 
Mr. Alfred was appointed by the governor of Massachusetts a com- 
missioner to act in Vermont for that state. Mr. Alfred, although 
comparatively a young man, is a careful, painstaking lawyer ; he 
understands the rules of practice thoroughly, and sees to it by 
constant work and watchfulness that the large number of causes of 
his firm are ready in season for trial. All pleadings and other 
papers are carefully drawn and filed on time. Much of the success 
of this firm is attributable to the thorough and [jrompt manner in 
which they care for the causes in their hanils. This firm has one 



276 BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR 

of the best selected law libraries for a working lawyer in northern 
Vermont. Mr. Alfred was married June 10, 1879, to Mary Loise 
Edes, of Newton, Mass. 

CHARLES J. ROWELL. 

THE subject of this sketch was born at North Troy, \'t., July 
16, 1848. He was the third son of Hon. A. J. Rowell. His 
early education was obtained in the district schools of his native 
town. Evincing at an early age an aptitude for learning, and always 
making the most of his time while at the primary schools, he early 
had the promise from his father of a collegiate course, but in this 
he was destined to be disappointed. His father returning from the 
army with impaired health was soon taken sick, and died December 
24, 1864. Thus at the age of si.xteen Charles found himself with 
his plans for life, to some extent, thwarted. Although his father 
was gone, he was still left his mother, a very estimable lady, who 
did all in her power to aid him to attend the academies at Derby, 
and Meriden, N. H. In September, 1872, he went to the law school 
at Albany, N. Y., and graduating there, was admitted to the bar of 
the supreme court of the state of New York. Upon returning to 
Vermont he was appointed deputy collector of customs at the port 
of Alburgh. In 1876 he resigned his oflfice as collector, and com- 
menced the practice of law at the village of Barton Landing, and 
remained there in successful practice till February, 1879, when he 
left his native state to make a home in the far West. He located 
in Leadville, Col., where he became a partner of Judge A. L. Wes- 
ton, and the firm did a flourishing business for about two years, 
when he left his law practice to become the financial agent of Sen- 
ator A. W. Tabor in his absence. Upon Senator Tabor's return to 
Colorado, Mr. Rowell resumed his law practice, forming a partner- 
ship with Judge Rockwell of Denver. 



GEORGE C. BENTLEY. 

GEORGE C. BENTLEY was born in Cambridge, Vt., August 
2, 1852, the son of Levi P. and Julia (Montague) Bentley. 
He was the youngest son of five children. His mother having 
died when he was five years of age, the home was broken up to 



okli<:ans county, Vermont. 277 

some extent, and when he was twelve he went to live with his uncle, 
Elisha Bentley, making it his home there and at his Uncle Harry 
Montague's, both in Cambridge, until he was twenty-two years of 
age, with the exception of two years spent in Wisconsin. 

He attended the district school winters and worked on the farm 
summers, also having the advantage of several terms schooling at 
the Cambridge Academy until he was about twenty, when he went 
to Oskosh, Wis., and took a course in the commercial college of 
Prof. W. W. Daggett. He then returned to Vermont, and began 
the study of the law with Judge L. H. Thompson at Irasburgh, and 
was admitted to the bar of Orleans county at the September term, 
A. D. 1876. 

He spent the ensuing winter in study in the office of Gen. William 
W. Grout at Barton, and in the spring of 1877 he opened an office 
at Fairfax, Vt., where he practiced law abont two years. He then 
went to Michigan and opened an office, but practiced but a short 
time when he was offered and accepted the management of the 
lumber yards of the Sturgeon River Lumber Company at Hancock, 
Mich., where he still resides. He was married February 19, 1877, 
to Sarah J. Thompson, sister of Hon. L. H. Thompson of Irasburgh. 



CHARLES O. BRIGHAM. 

MAJ. CHARLES O. BRIGHAM, the son of Elijah and 
Mary (Loker) Brigham, is from Massachusetts stock. His 
paternal grandfather was Col. Ephraim Brigham of Marlboro, Mass. 
Charles O. was born in Fitchburg, Mass., December i, 1838. His 
father having moved to Cambridgeport, he first attended school 
there, and subsequently at the public schools in Boston. In 1855 
he entered the Stanstead, P. O., Academy, (his brother-in-law then 
being principal of that institution), where he completed the course 
preparatory to entering college, and in the fall of 1858 he entered 
the university at Middletown, Conn. The outbreak of the rebellion 
interru]ited his collegiate course, which was never renewed. In the 
spring of 1861 he enlisted, and on May 22, 1861, was mustered into 
the service as a private of Co. G, 4th Connecticut Infantry, to serve 
for three years or during the war, and he served continuously in 
the army of the Potomac until his discharge; September 25, 1S65. 
36 



278 BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR 

Soon after his muster he was appointed first sergeant, and October 
26, 1861, was made second lieutenant, and in March, 1862, was pro- 
moted to be first lieutenant of his company. The regiment was 
soon reorganized into the ist Connecticut Artillery, and January 
22, 1863, he was promoted to the captaincy of Co. D of this regi- 
ment, and was again promoted May 13, 1865, to be major of the 
1st Battalion of said regiment. He was also breveted major for 
gallant and meritorious conduct before Petersburgh, Va., in the 
advance on Richmond. Of his military career it is but just to say 
that, undertaken not from choice, but under an exalted sense of the 
duty he owed an imperiled and loved country, every service required 
was freely given. He could always be depended upon implicitly, 
possessing that quality of courage which is the result of entire 
devotion to duty, even at the cost of complete self-sacrifice. Upon 
his return to New England he went to his father's home in New- 
tonville, Mass., and soon after engaged in the furniture business in 
Cambridgeport, Mass. While located here he was married Febru- 
ary 14, 1867, to Clara A. Spalding, daughter of Levi Spalding of 
Derby Line, to whom he had become attached in early school-days. 
In 1872 he entered the office of Roberts & Osgood of Boston for 
the study of the law, but his studies at this time were much inter- 
rupted until he removed to Vermont in 1874, where he at once 
renewed his law studies in the office of his former school and col- 
lege mate, John Young of Derby Line, and at the February term, 
1877, was admitted a member of the bar of Orleans county, and 
immediately commenced the practice of his profession at Derby 
Line, where he has since resided. Mr. Brigham is regarded as a 
faithful and reliable attorney, and a conscientious and upright man. 



JOHN LEON LEWIS. 

JOHN LEON LEWIS was born March 7, 1S58, at Berkshire, 
Vt. He was the son of Milo G. and Euretta (Willard) Lewis. 
His grandfather, Milo Lewis, was of English descent, and settled 
in Berkshire early in its history. John L received his education 
at the common schools of Berkshire and the St. Albans Academy. 
Early in 1875 he commenced the study of the law in the office of 
Hon. H. C. Wilson at North Troy, and was admitted to the bar of 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 2/9 

Orleans county at its September term, 1877, and immediately 
opened an office at North Troy, where he has since practiced his 
profession. In December, 1882, he formed a copartnership with 
Frank H. Rand, under the firm of Lewis & Rand for the practice 
of the law, which continued about one year. Mr. Lewis is pos- 
sessed of energy, ability and tact, and has succeeded by his own 
exertions in building up a thriving law business. He is also en- 
gaged in the mercantile business at North Troy quite extensively. 
He was married June 17, 1885, to Miss Georgia E. Harrison. 



CHARLES A. PROUTY. 

CHARLES A. PROUTY was born at Newport, Vt., October 
9, 1853. He is a descendant of John Prouty, who was born 
at Spencer, Mass., in 1747, and was one of the first settlers of 
Newport in 1799. He twice married; his first wife deceased before 
he came to Newport. For his second wife he married Alice Dag- 
gett, and settled upon a farm in the north part of Newport near 
the lake shore. Arnold, the second son, married Sally, daughter of 
Martin Adams, and was blessed with eight children, and died Jan- 
uary 16, 1 88 1. John A., their fifth child, born in 1826, and the 
father of our subject, married Hannah Lamb, and had by her si.x 
children. He is one of the prominent business men of Newport, 
being extensively engaged in farming and the manufacture of lum- 
ber. Charles A., his oldest child, was never very robust, although 
enjoying ordinary health ; his make-up was more of the slender, 
intellectual type. His boyhood was spent on his father's farm, and 
attending the district school near his father's residence and the 
school at the village of " Lake Bridge." He was a ready scholar, 
and had made such rapid progress that at the age of fourteen he 
was sent to the high school at Upton, Mass. There, and at Derby 
and St. Johnsbury Academies, he fitted for college. In 1 871, at 
the age of eighteen, most thoroughly prepared, he entered Dart- 
mouth College, and graduated in 1875, the acknowledged leader of 
his class. The science of mathematics in all its branches was his 
favorite study, and one that intensely interested him throughout 
his full course, and particularly so the branch of Astronomy. He 
resolved to make it the study of his life, and soon after graduation 



280 BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR 

from college he entered the astronomical observatory at Alleghany 
City,Penn. Hard and protracted study during a long college course, 
coupled with close application, almost entirely indoors, with change 
of climate, soon prostrated young Prouty, and at the end of one 
year he returned to Vermont. Upon his recovery his friends, par- 
ticularly his father, advised him to study for the law, knowing it 
would not, like the other profession, necessarily take him away from 
home. Their counsel prevailed, and he entered the office of The- 
ophilus Grout, Esq., at Newport, and was admitted to the Orleans 
county bar at the February term, 1877, and right away formed a 
copartnership with Mr. Grout, which continued one year. 

Mr. Prouty was always thoroughly a student ; he enjoyed diligent, 
patient research of almost any subject, and the subject of the law 
was no exception. He enjoyed its study exceedingly, but its prac- 
tice, as he found it during that first year, which was not particularly 
different from that of almost every country lawyer, made up of 
almost everything in the shape of business, was not at all to his 
taste ; hence when he was offered the position of principal of the 
Newport Academy and Graded School he accepted it. This work 
was entirely to his mind, and he continued the principal of this 
school for two years to the entire satisfaction of all. At the end 
of this time the close confinement of the school-room had so im- 
paired his health that he resigned, and took an extended trip West. 
In July, 1882, he again opened an office at Newport for the practice 
of the law, and in September of that year was elected state's attor- 
ney for the county of Orleans, and in 1884 was again elected to 
that office. The duties of this office combined with civil cases of 
the better class that soon came to hand, fully occupied his time ; 
and since 1882 he has been engaged in many of the more important 
cases in the county, notable among them being the case of State 
vs. Maloney, the editor of the Richford Gazette, which was an 
indictment for publishing libellous and slanderous articles in his 
paper against Chief Justice Royce. Mr. Prouty conducted and 
closed the case for the state with an argument of marked ability. 
In his practice he has developed many characteristics seldom found 
only after long experience and thorough study in the profession. 
Independence, firmness and resolution are his salient points. As 
an advocate he eschews all mere ornament, but there is an earnest- 
ness and directness in his manner which at once forcibly and favor- 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 28 1 

ably impresses an audience with his sincei'ity, with his complete 
belief in the justness of his cause, and carries conviction to the 
mind of court or jury. March 26, 1879, he was married to 
Abbie Davis of Lyndon, and they have one son. Ward Prouty. 



JOHN C. BURKE. 

By Hon. H. Henry Powers. 

JOHN C. BURKE, son of Walter and Catherine Riley Burke, 
was born in the city of Leeds, England, August 15, 1854. He 
is of Irish descent. His father emigrated to this country soon 
after John's birth, and lived in New York City a few years, and in 
i860 removed to Craftsbury, Vt. He lived on a small farm about 
one and a half miles from Craftsbury Common. 

John attended the district schools in Craftsbury and a few terms 
at the academy. When the building of the Lamoille Valley rail- 
road commenced John engaged himself as a teamster, and soon 
became a time-keeper for the contractors, then a foreman, and ulti- 
mately a contractor himself. In 1871 he left his employment on 
the road, and attended two more terms of school at Craftsbury 
Academy. In the summer of 1872 he had charge of the construc- 
tion of the railroad then being built from Newport to Richford, and 
in the fall of 1872 returned to the Lamoille Valley road, and had 
charge of the grading of the same from Wolcott to Hydepark. In 
the spring of 1873 he again attended a term of school at Craftsbury 
Academy. In 1874 he resumed his work on the railroad till fall, 
when he took another term of school at Craftsbury. He taguht a 
district school in the winters of 1874 and 1875, and attended his 
last term of school in the spring of 1875. Until the fall of 1876 
he was again engaged in railroad work. 

Thus his early education was of that limited but practical kind 
which has developed the characters of so many of the public men 
of this country. In such an education there are two studies only 
to be pursued. First, how to earn money, and second, how to spend 
it to the best advantage. In this case both branches were very 
successfully mastered. John's earnings were not used in fostering 
bad habits and pleasing bad companions, but in acquiring that edu- 
cation that would fit him best for the profession of the law, towards 
which his youthful ambition led him. 



262 BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR 

In the fall of 1876 he commenced the study of law in the office 
of W. W. Miles, Esq., then of Craftsbury, and in September, 1878, 
was admitted to the bar in Orleans county. In due time he was 
admitted to the bar of the supreme court of Vermont, and that of 
the United States Circuit Court for the district of Vermont. He 
began practice at Albany, Vt., and soon gained a large clientage, 
which has rapidly grown till the present time, and which called him 
into Lamoille and Caledonia counties as well as his own. Since 
1882 he has been engaged in many of the more important cases in 
the three counties named, and has often been called to other coun- 
ties to assist in the trial of important causes. In his practice 
at the bar he has developed many of the characteristics of the 
best lawyership. He is honest with the court and with his associ- 
ates, is ambitious to win his cases by fair dealing and on their mer- 
its, gives to his cases the most thorough preparation, both on the 
law and on the facts, and thus comes to the trial armed at all points. 
He has a fine flow of language, an easy and dignified manner, and 
a happy gift of illustration. He has a copious supply of genuine 
Irish wit, which he often handles with great effect. 

In politics Mr. Burke is a democrat, but on all occasions subordi- 
nates his partisanship to his manhood. In 1882 he represented the 
strong republican town of Albany in the legislature, where he served 
upon the judiciary committee, and took a leading and influential 
part in the debates. He was chairman of the Vermont delegation 
to the national convention at Chicago in 1884 which nominated 
President Cleveland. September i, 1885, he was appointed a dep- 
uty collector of customs at Newport. 

He married Gertrude Dow, daughter of John C. Dow of Albany, 
November 23, 1881, by whom he has one child, Walter Scott Burke, 
born June 26, 1885. 

JOHN L. CARR. 

THE subject of this sketch was born at Kilwinning, Scotland, 
June 22, 1850, and is the son of Hugh and Mary (Lenerthan) 
Carr. His father is a farmer, and immigrated from Scotland to 
Craftsbury in 1853, and removed from there to Glover in the fall of 
1855. Here young Carr lived, assisting in the farm work summers, 
and attending the district school winters. As he grew older this 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 283 

way of life did not suit him, and he determined to secure an educa- 
tion if possible. To this end he went to the Normal School at 
Johnson, and subsequently attended the academy at St. Johnsbury. 
During this time he paid his own way by working at farming dur- 
ing summers and teaching winters. As a teacher he was very suc- 
cessful, having taught eight terms prior to commencing the study 
of law, two of these being the village schools at Glover and Cov- 
entry. June 5, 1876 he entered the office of Gen. William W. Grout 
at Barton, and pursued the study of the law until the September term, 
1878, when he was admitted a member of the Orleans county bar, 
and in November, 1885, admitted a member of the supreme court 
of the state. After his admission to the bar he at once commenced 
practice at Barton, where he has since resided. As a lawyer he is 
an earnest, patient worker, and to his untiring and persistent indus- 
try is largely due his success. In religious sentiments he is a con- 
gregationalist, and in politics a republican. He married Josie E. 
Bodwell of Glover, February 26, 1879, ''■'I'^l has two children. 



FRANK PIERCE McGREGOR. 

THE subject of this biography was born in Londonderry, N. H., 
October 27, 1852. He was the son of Lewis and Augusta 
(Blodgett) McGregor, the former of Scotch-Irish, and the latter of 
English ancestry, the family of his mother being one of the first 
and leading families which settled in Londonderry. He obtained his 
primary education at the common schools, and fitted for college at 
Pinkerton Academy, Derry, N. H. He entered Dartmouth College 
in August, 1871, and graduated in June, 1875, and soon afterward 
accepted the position of principal of the academy at Bradford, Vt., 
where he remained two years. He then went to Newport and accept- 
ed a similar position in the Newport Academy and Graded School, 
and here he took up the study of the law evenings and other spare 
time in the office of Charles A. Prouty, Esq. He was admitted to 
the bar in Orleans county at the September term, 1878. In 1879 
he commenced the practice of the law at Barton Landing, but only 
remained a few months; subsequently was in the office of Gen. W. 
W. Grout at Barton a short time. His experience thus far as an 
attorney not proving congenial to him, he went to Fitchburg, Mass., 



284 BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR 

and engaged as master of the High Street Grammar School. After 
two years' service he resigned, and took a similar place at Lawrence, 
Mass., at an advanced salary, where he remained two years. Dur- 
ing this time the success of the school more than equaled the expec- 
tations of its most sanguine friends. He was then elected master 
of the Lawrence High School, which position he still holds. As a 
teacher it is due to Mr. McGregor to say that he has been eminently 
successful, his time and energies having been given almost e.xclu 
sively to this profession. Notwithstanding this, he has not gi\en 
up the idea in the near future of again taking up the profession of 
the law. Mr. McGregor is a member of the Lawrence Street Con- 
gregational church, Lawrence. He was married January 30, 1884, 
to Miss Lucia Sanderson of Phillipstown, Mass., and has one son. 



CHARLES H. WALWORTH. 

CHARLES H. WALWORTH was born at Wayne, Ohio, June 
21, 1853, the son of Charles B. Walworth, who was born at 
Canaan, N. H., September 30, 1806. His mother, Hannah M. 
Hotchkiss, was born at Vernon, Ohio, February 19, 1818. His 
early years were spent at Wayne, where he received his primary 
education, hi 1870 he entered Grand River College at Austinburg, 
Ohio, and graduated therefrom in 1875, and immediately commenced 
the study of the law in the office of Simonds & Wade at Jefferson, 
Ohio. In 1S75 he went to Vermont, and was engaged to some ex- 
tent in aiding his uncle, D. P. Walworth, E^sq., of Coventry, in the 
management of his extensive business, but still continued the study 
of the law in the office of L. M. Shedd at Coventry. At the Sep- 
tember term, A. D. 1878, he was admitted a member of the Orleans 
county bar, and in the fall of that year commenced the practice of 
his profession at Elk Point, Dakota, where he remained in active 
and successful practice until 1884, when he removed to Pierre, 
Dakota. Mr. Walworth is a young lawyer of good ability, ener- 
getic, upright and persevering, and is destined to make his mark in 
the home of his adoption. Mr. Walworth was married in 1881 to 
Mattie L. Pattee of Ackley, Iowa. 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 28$ 

JAMES GREELEY SIMPSON. 

THE subject of this sketch was born at Craftsbury, October 12, 
1854, and is of Scotch ancestry, his grandfather, John Simp- 
son, having emigrated from Scotland in 1830 and settled in Greens- 
boro, Vt., where he lived until his death, which occurred in 1876, 
at the advanced age of eighty-three years. He reared a family of 
ten children. 

Hon. James W. Simpson, the father of our subject, his second 
child, commenced in the mercantile business at East Craftsbury 
about 1847, and has continued to do a thriving and prosperous bus- 
iness to the present time, having the confidence of the people of 
his county and town, as evinced by his election to offices of trust 
and responsibility among the highest in their gift. 

James G. obtained his education at the school of his native dis- 
trict, Craftsbury Academy, Williston Seminary, East Hampton, 
Mass., and St. Johnsbury Academy, where he graduated. He at- 
tended for one term the Columbia Law School, New York City, 
after which he completed his law studies in the office of Hon. L. H. 
Thompson of Irasburgh, and W. VV. Miles, Esq., of Craftsbury, 
being admitted to the bar of Orleans county at the February term, 
A. D. 1879, ^'""^1 immediately commenced the practice of his pro- 
fession at Greensboro Rend, Vt. He remained here a few years, 
and removed to Craftsbury and opened an office, and in January, 
1885, he removed to Minneapolis, Minn., and formed a copartner- 
ship for law practice with one Morgan, under the firm name of 
Morgan & Simpson. 



FRED S. TUPPER. 

THli subject of this sketch was born at Bakersfield, Franklin 
county, Vt., December 31, 1855, and is the son of Jackson and 
Caroline (Parkhurst) Tupper. Mr. Tupper received a good elemen- 
tary education in the common schools of his county, and fitted for 
college at Rarre Academy, graduating from that institution June 8, 
1876. He then attended the law school at Cambridge, Mass., one 
term, and returning from there entered the office of John S. Tupper 
at Milton, Vt., where he pursued the study of law. Subsequently 
he went into the office of Hon. Henry R. Start of" Bakersfield, from 
37 



286 BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAK 

whose office he was admitted to the bar of the Franklin county 
court at the April term, A. D. 1879. He immediately commenced 
the practice of his profession at Troy, remaining there until Feb- 
ruary I, 1880, when he removed to East Fairfield, Vt., where he 
now resides and practices his profession. 



IRA F. ADAMS. 



THE subject of this sketch was born at West Derby, Orleans 
county, Vt., August 21, 1859, the son of Warren W. and Laura 
(Fish) Adams. His early education was obtained at the common 
schools of Derby and Newport, and subsequently attended the 
Stanstead College, where he took a full course with the exception 
of Greek. He also attended a school at Lewiston, Me., one term. 
In 1878 he commenced the study of the law with Theophilus Grout 
at Newport, and was admitted to the bar of Orleans county at the 
September term, 1880, and immediately went West, commencing 
the practice of his profession at Parsons, Kan., where he has since 
resided. Mr. Adams at once took a good stand in his profession. 
He was elected clerk of the city in 1884. He was married Novem- 
ber 19, 1884, to Jessie Graves of Parsons. 



ORLO H. AUSTIN. 

By Charles H. Jones. 

' I "HERE'S a tide in the affairs of men, which taken at the 
-I flood leads on to fortune." To some the flood tide comes 
in early life, favoring breezes fill every sail, brilliant success crowns 
every effort. To others it comes in mature manhood, and to oth- 
ers late in life. While to some the tide seems ever at its ebb, and 
whether from fault of chart, compass or sail, failure alone is the 
reward of effort. 

In the current of other lives there is little of ebb and flow, but 
from its obscure source a silent progress with constant accretion. 
Obstructed in its course, it seeks broader channels, ever advancing 
in its slow, steady, resistless flow to the ocean of human destiny. 
To this class belongs the subject of our sketch. 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 287 

Orlo Henry Austin was born in Eden, Vt., August 31, A. D. 
1838. He came of New England stociv. His grandfather was 
among the earliest settlers of Waterbury, Vt., coming from Con- 
necticut. His father, Asa Austin, was a farmer, who joined the 
Vermont Volunteers in 18 14, and was in the battle of Plattsburgh. 
His mother, Nancy Gregg, was a native of New Hampshire. 

When about ten years of age he came with his parents to Crafts- 
bury in this county. Here he attended the district schools and 
Craftsbury Academy, and taught in the towns of Craftsbury and 
Wolcott. In 1859 he was admitted to the University of Vermont, 
but teaching the Brownington Academy that fall, he joined his 
class at the opening of the spring term. Near the close of his 
junior year in college he enlisted in Co. F, nth Regiment, Vermont 
Volunteers, and was chosen second lieutenant. In November, 1862, 
he was promoted to first lieutenant of Co. I. While in active ser- 
vice under Sheridan in the Shenandoah Valley, he was promoted to 
the captaincy of Co. A, September 2, 1864. He was in every bat- 
tle in which his regiment was engaged except the assault on Peters- 
burgh. As a soldier Capt. Austin was content with a faithful 
discharge of duty, seeking neither favor nor promotion. That his 
service was fearless and eflficient, his comrades will bear witness. 
With the many brave boys from his county and state, he fought a 
good fight, he finished his course with honor, he kept the faith to 
the end. 

After his return from the war he erected a store at Barton Land- 
ing, and engaged in business as a general dealer. In November, 
1869, he formed a partnership with C. E. Joslyn, and a large and 
flourishing trade was established. In November, 1878, J. C. Par- 
ker and I. D. R. Collins joined the firm, and an extensive lumber 
business was added. The great decline in prices from 1875 to 1877, 
the destruction of their stock of goods by fire, a technical defect in 
the insurance and heavy losses by the failure of other parties, 
caused the suspension of the firm in the spring of 1877. Capt. 
Austin then went out of trade, but at once erected a large business 
block on the site of the one burned. Little more than a year after 
the new building was occupied, through the negligence of a tenant 
it was consumed by fire. On this site his present business block, a 
substantial aid and ornament to the village, was erected in the sum- 
mer of 1878. 



288 niOGRAPHY OF T}IE BAR 

In 1877 he formed a partnership with A. C. Parker, who held the 
post-office and a large insurance business. In this firm Capt. Aus- 
tin did the office work, and improved his spare time in the study of 
law, purchasing books as occasion offered and borrowing of promi- 
nent lawyers in the county, from whom he received kindly aid and 
counsel. He was admitted to the Orleans county bar at the Feb- 
ruary term, A. D. 1880. By reason of his scholarly tastes, his lit- 
erary attainments, his experience as a trial justice and general 
business adviser, and as a practitioner in justice courts, he was the 
better equipped at forty years of age to change from a business to 
a professional life. 

From the first his practice was adequate for the support of a 
large family. A careful and prudent counselor, his business has 
largely been of that practical nature, partly the outgrowth of modern 
times, by which rights are secured while litigation is avoided. Yet 
when occasion demands, he is not wanting in the elements of a 
good fighter. Coming to the bar late in life, he would be at great 
disadvantage if dependent alone on the sharp practice of legal 
fencing and technical subtleties, in which by long experience the 
mind is made alert. While not unmindful of these aids, his chief 
reliance is on the merits of his cause, which, before both court and 
jury, is perhaps the safer anchor. 

As an advocate there is no display of mental pyrotechnics, no 
artful appeal to sentiment and passion, no fluent sophistry by which 
"to make the worse appear the better cause." Of this he is inca- 
pable. He wants "that glib and oily art, to speak and purpose not." 
His method is a calm, cogent appeal to reason and justice, with 
strong denunciation of hypocrisy and shams. 

November i, 1881, he was appointed judge of probate for the dis- 
trict of Orleans, to fill the vacancy caused by the death of Hon. I. 
N. Cushman. The time has passed when business talents alone are 
deemed sufficient for this office. It is a domain in which the maxim 
emphatically applies, "a question settled right is settled ever, but 
settled wrong is settled never." It is and must be a distinct and 
separate branch of the law. It is one in which, as a rule, the gen- 
eral practitioner is unversed. The relative importance of our courts 
is sometimes forgotten. In the county court close questions of law 
and sharp contests arise, when the real issue is a mere matter of 
will between the parties, or a pecuniary trifle. The probate court 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 289 

is pre-eminent!)- the people's court. To it all must come, soon or 
late. Through it the bulk of their property must pass, each gener- 
ation. By it large estates are distributed. In it questions are tried 
and decisions rendered, which affect the interests of parties practi- 
cally unrepresented and perchance unborn. The peace of families 
is involved, the rights of the widow and orphan, generations to 
come, influences far reaching in their results. 

Judge Austin has thoroughly mastered the principles of probate 
law, and keeps abreast of current decisions, in which new and intri- 
cate questions are constantly arising, while his army experience 
and knowledge of general business have prepared him for its prac- 
tical administration. It is safe to assert that he is well fitted for 
this position. Devoid of policy, amply furnished with backbone, 
he meets little temptation where men prone to yield to the pressure 
of influence might lead a devious course. In him the poor and 
afflicted find friendly sympathy and counsel, with righteous indig- 
nation at oppression and wrong. In the five years that he has held 
the office, many close and bitter contests have come before him. 
Yet from a fairness in hearing all sides and parties, a cool and 
sound judgment, a firm adherence to justice and law, there have 
been few appeals from his decisions, and none have been reversed. 

For some years he was superintendent of schools for the town of 
Barton. Connected with the old Congregational church at Brown- 
ingtou, he was active in forming a branch in his own village, and in 
the completion of their fine church building. From its organiza- 
tion ten years since, he has been the superintendent of a live and 
vigorous Sunday-school. 

In the fall of 1869 he was married to Sophia M., daughter of 
Capt. Timothy Joslyn of Brownington, in whom he found a fitting 
helpmeet. Six children have resulted from this union, richly en- 
dowed with the graces which give joy to the present and promise 
to the future. The tragic death of the eldest, a boy of some ten 
years, by drowning in Lake Memphremagog, brought crushing sor- 
row to a happy home. 

As a citizen Judge Austin is eminently public spirited, ever ready 
to do his part and more, social and genial, with a lively interest in 
education, temperance and religion, in whatever tends to elevate 
and ennoble human life and character. 



290 BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR 

Claiming no ideal perfection, admitting faults and foibles common 
to humanity, considering the breadth of character and attainment, 
in no fulsome sense may the words of the immortal bard be ap- 
plied to the subject of this sketch : 

"His life was earnest, and the elements 
So mixed in him that nature might stand up 
And say to all the world, ' This was a man.'" 



AMOS HERBERT CARPENTER. 

By Hon. Jonathan Ross. 

AMOS HERBERT CARPENTER, the son of Amos B. and 
Cosbi (Parker) Carpenter, was born at West Waterford, Vt., 
January i, 1855. He fitted for college at the St. Johnsbury Acad- 
emy, graduating in June, 1874. He entered Dartmouth College 
that fall, and graduated in the class of 1878. As a student he was 
characterized, rather by persistency and thoroughness, than by 
rapidity in acquiring and brilliancy. Immediately upon graduating 
he entered upon the study of the law, first with Belden & Ide of 
St. Johnsbury, then at Bath, N. H., with his uncle, now Judge A. 
P. Carpenter, and finally with John Young, Esq., of Derby Line, 
Vt. He was admitted to the bar at the September term of Orleans 
county court for 18S0. While pursuing his classical and legal stud- 
ies, he taught several terms of school successfully. In the fall of 
1880 he opened an ofifice at Middlebury, Vt., and practiced until 
the following summer, when he was laid aside for awhile by an 
attack of fever and ague, contracted two or three years before 
while on a visit in the West. In the fall of 1882 he formed a part- 
nership with C. B. Leslie, Esq., of Wells River, for a year. At the 
close of his year he went to Minnesota and formed a partnership 
with Martin V. B. Drew, Esq., a son of the late Theophilus Drew 
of Danville, Vt. He showed himself so faithful and competent in 
the practice of his profession while with Mr. Drew, that on January 
I, 1884, he was offered the position of attorney and collector for 
the house of Osborne & Co. of Minneapolis, who were doing an 
extensive business throughout the West in the manufacture and 
sale of farming implements. He accepted the position, and worked 
for the firm a year on salary. At the close of the year he was 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VEKMONT. 29 1 

employed by some Eastern parties to go to Stockton, Cal., to con- 
test the will of a person recently deceased, who formerly went from 
the East. He is reported to have been successful in preventing the 
probate of the pretended will, and is at present at Stockton looking 
after the interests of the heirs to the estate. In the practice of his 
profession, as in his academic and college life, he has shown himself 
faithful, thorough, persistent and competent. 



EDSON N. CONNAL. 

THE subject of this sketch was born at Newport, Vt., February 
25, 1853. He is the son of Peter Connai, a native of Ster- 
ling, Scotland, who emigrated to this county in 1850, and settled 
at Newport. Mr. Connai served ten years in the British army as 
sergeant-major. After coming to this country he soon took out his 
naturalization papers, and at once took a great interest in the pros- 
perity and growth of the republic. The people of Newport have 
shown their appreciation of his efforts by electing him to positions 
of public trust and responsibility, such as selectman and justice of 
the peace. 

Edson N. worked on his father's farm summers, and attended 
the school of his native district what time he could obtain until he 
was eighteen years of age. He then entered the State Normal 
School at Johnson, where he graduated in 1874. He then contin- 
ued his studies at St. Johnsbury Academy, where he remained two 
years, paying his way during all this time by his own labor in vari- 
ous ways. After leaving the academy he taught school for awhile, 
then entered the office of Grout & Prouty at Newport. In the 
spring of 1878 he continued his law studies with Judge L. H. 
Thompson of Irasburgh, and in 1879 was appointed register of pro- 
bate, thereby becoming self-sustaining. He completed his prepar- 
ation, and was admitted to the bar of Orleans county court at the 
February term, A. D. 1880. In the spring of 1881 he went to Bur- 
lington, Kan., where he has since resided, practicing his profession 
with excellent success. He was married September, 1881, to Julia 
A. Thompson, sister of Hon. L. H. Thompson of Irasburgh, and 
has one child. 



292 BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR 

WILLIS E. DODGE. 

THE subject of this biography was born in Lowell, Vt., May 
II, 1S57. His father, William R. Dodge, was a farmer of lim- 
ited means, the son of Andrew J. Dodge, formerly from Montpelier. 
His mother was Harriet N. Baldwin, the only daughter of Asa 
Baldwin, late of Lowell. The circumstances of the parents of our 
subject prevented the gratification of the disposition manifested in 
the son during his earlier youth, to acquire an education. How- 
ever, he attended the district and select school of his native town, 
and being an apt scholar and disposed to make the most of the 
advantages at his command he had, at the age of thirteen years, 
acquired quite a thorough knowledge of the elementary branches 
usually taught in district schools. In the fall of 1870 and 1871 he 
attended the Westfield Grammar School, then under the charge of 
Mahlon C. Di.\, a superior teacher. In the fall of 1873 young 
Dodge went to Barton, and entered the store of O. D. Owen as 
clerk. Here and in the store of James W. Hall he remained until 
the spring of 1877. His experience as a dry goods clerk was very 
satisfactory, both to his employers and himself, and the spring of 
1877 found him making active preparations to establish himself in 
the mercantile business at Barton, a friend having expressed a will- 
ingness to furnish him a stock of goods, when a slight circumstance 
turned the whole current of his life. 

The facts are given as related to the writer by himself as follows : 
" One night after closing the store and starting for home, some one 
engaged in spirited debate in the office of Hon. W. W. Grout across 
the way attracted my attention, and upon entering found the Gen- 
eral and my uncle, F. W. Baldwin, earnestly engaged in trying 
before a justice court jury a trespass case about some hay, both of 
these able expounders of the law being in their best style on such 
occasions, and both apparently wrought up to the highest pitch of 
endeavor for his client. This was my first experience in the court- 
room, and no Roman youth ever watched the combat of two gladi- 
ators in the arena with keener interest or more awe-struck counte- 
nance than I, the judicial disposition of that load of hay. To me 
it was the most wonderful revelation, and aroused within me feel- 
ings and aspirations dormant until then. I became as much inter- 
ested and excited as the contestants, and much more so than their 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 293 

clients appeared to be. The jury di-sagreed and I went home late, 
but not to sleep. Interest in the case, disgust for the jury, mingled 
with natural solicitude for the safety of both lawyers when they 
should again meet, (for I entertained the highest regard for both), 
kept sleep from my eye-lids, and caused me to think seriously about 
myself and my life work. Before another week had passed I had 
fully decided to fit myself for the profession of the law." Young 
Dodge at once entered St. Johnsbury Academy, and graduated in 
the scientific and classical course in the class of 1S79. During this 
time and while pursuing his law studies, he taught with excellent 
success schools at West Glover, Albany, Barton and Barton Land- 
ing. In 1879 he entered the ofiice of F. W. Baldwin at Barton, 
where he had previously spent all of his spare time, for the study 
of the law, and was admitted to the bar of Orleans county court at 
the September term, A. D. 1880, and believing that the great West 
with her enterprise and broader field of action offered greater 
inducements to a young and ambitious man than he could hope to 
find at home, he started out, and arrived at F"argo, Dak., October 
6, 1880. He immediately entered the office of Roberts & Spauld- 
ing, the latter being from Orleans county, where he remained until 
January 22, 1881, familiarizing himself with the code practice of 
Dakota. He was admitted to the bar of Dakota in November, 
1880, and in January, 1881, entered into copartnership with Albert 
A. Allen at Jamestown, the pioneer lawyer of that place, and soon 
assumed a prominent position at the bar of his county ; and so well 
has he maintained the reputation universally achieved by " Green 
Mountain " boys, that he is today recognized as one of the leading 
lawyers of North Dakota, and commands a fine practice. In April, 
1883, he was elected city attorney for the city of Jamestown, which 
position he has ever since acceptably held. He is also attorney for 
the Dakota division of the Northern Pacific Railroad Company, the 
offices of which are at Jamestown, also secretary and attorney for 
the Northern Dakota Elevator Company, of which he is a stock- 
holder and director. He is also recognized as one of the leading 
criminal lawyers of Dakota, and has had an extensive practice in 
that line, both in the Territorial and United States courts, where 
he has been almost universally successful. The following we take 
from the Jamestown Alert: 

38 



294 BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR 

" Honor to whom honor is due. The Alert takes great pleasure 
in noting the prosperity of W. E. Dodge, who from well earned 
laurels is now recognized as the leading attorney of Jamestown, and 
who has attained that distinction, and we may say eminence, for it 
is an eminence to occupy that position among such legal talent as 
Jamestown affords. It is well earned by Mr. Dodge, for he has 
given close application to his profession, and is known as an inde- 
fatigable worker for his clients, and rarely fails to win his case. He 
has a fine library, a commodious office, and a practice that already 
extends beyond the limits of the territory. Though comparatively 
young in years he is old in his profession, and in numerous cases 
has already grappled with the ablest and most noted attorneys of 
the territory, and won in cases involving the most intricate and 
abstruse questions of law. He came to this country from the far 
distant state of Vermont a few years ago, and by dint of hard work 
and indomitable perseverance has already accumulated a compe- 
tence, and an honorable record in his profession that is above price." 

On March 27, 1882, Mr. Dodge was married to Hattie M. Crist 
of Vinton, Iowa, and they have one child, a daughter. At the 
present time he has for a partner E. W. Camp, the firm name being 
Dodge & Camp. 

HENRY HARRISON MARTIN. 

THE subject of this sketch was born in Enosburgh, Vt., June 
22, 1855. He was the son of William H. and Fanny (Libby) 
Martin. Henry attended the common schools and Enosburgh 
Academy until his father removed to Barton, on to the Ba.xter 
homestead near Barton village, in February, 1868. Subsequently 
he worked on the farm summers, taught winters, and attended the 
Barton Academy and Graded School and St. Johnsbury Academy 
until 1878, when he entered the office of Frederick W. Baldwin, Esq., 
at Barton for the study of the law. During this time he had taught 
successfully schools at St. Johnsbury Center, Enosburgh Falls, North 
Troy and Coventry Falls. He had during the time he was teach- 
ing at Troy and afterward studied law to some extent in the office 
of Col. William R. Rowell of that place. 

He was admitted to the bar at the September term, 18S0, and in 
December of that year went to Canon City, Col, and opened an 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 295 

office for the practice of his profession. On his way West he 
caught a severe cold, and hardly reached there before he was pros- 
trated with lung fever. He rallied somewhat after the fever had 
its run, but it was soon evident he had consumption. He returned 
at once to Vermont, but only to die, his death taking place May i, 
1881. 



FRANCIS SUMNER ROGERS. 

FRANCIS SUMNER ROGERS was born at Troy, Vt., on the 
3d day of December, 1854. His father, C. S. Rogers, M. D., 
practiced medicine in Troy for more than twenty years, and his 
mother was the daughter of Samuel Sumner, Esq., of that place. 

After pursuing preparatory studies at Derby and St. Johnsbury 
Academies, he entered Dartmouth College, and graduated in 1878. 
He studied law with H. E. Powell, Esq., of Troy, and with P. K. 
Gleed, Esq., of Morrisville, and was admitted to the Orleans county 
bar at the February term of 1880. Since then he has practiced his 
profession at Troy with good success. He married Alice A. Aiken, 
daughter of Leander Aiken of Sutton, P. O., April 11, 1882, and 
they have two children. 



JOHN G. FOSTER. 

JOHN G. FOSTER, the son of Austin T. and Sarah Gilman 
F"oster, was born in Derby, Vt., March 9, 1859. Stephen Fos- 
ter, his grandfather, the fifth descendant of Thomas Foster who 
came to Massachusetts in 1635, was born in Rochester, Mass., July 
30, 1772. January 3, 1802, he married Mary King, daughter of 
Jonathan King, and shortly afterward moved to what is now known 
as East Montpelier, in the then almost unbroken wilderness and 
settled, rearing a family of ten children. He died April 3, 1850. 
Austin T., the youngest son, when in his fifteenth year left Mont- 
pelier, and entered his brother Stephen's store at Rock Island, P. O., 
as a clerk. When he was nineteen years of age he was admitted a 
member of the firm of Spalding & Foster of Derby Line, since 
which time he has been one of the most prominent business men 
of the place, and has occupied many places of public trust and 
responsibility. He has been president of the National Bank of 



296 BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR 

Derby Line since 1872, has represented Derby in the legislature, 
and has recently been nominated to the state senate. 

John G., his oldest son, industriously attended the school of his 
native village until he went to Goddard Seminary, Barre, Vt., where 
he fitted for college, and in 1872 entered Tuft's College, graduating 
in 1880. He immediately commenced the study of the law with 
lidwards, Dickerman & Young at Newport, and was admitted to 
the bar at the September term, A. D. 1881. Wishing to be fitted 
in the most thorough manner for the profession of his choice, he 
went to Boston and took a full course of law lectures at the Boston 
University. Upon his return he opened an office at Derby Line 
for the practice of his profession. Mr. Foster is a young man of 
good native ability, and has been favored with most excellent prep- 
aration for his life work. Now with close application, and hard work, 
his friends may e.xpect the realization of their highest hopes of his 
professional standing. 



EUGENE L. EMERY. 

THE subject of this biography was born at East Andover, N. H., 
August 12, 1 85 5, the son of Willard A. and Sarah (Brown) 
Emery. His father and grandfather were farmers, the latter having 
cut the first tree upon the old farm where our subject and his father 
were both born. He attended the school of his native district and 
the village school at East Andover until the age of fifteen, when he 
entered the academy at New London, N. H. (The course of study 
was preparatory to entering college). He graduated in June, 1873. 
The same month, before completing his seventeenth year, he was 
examined for admission to Dartmouth College, and entered there 
at the fall term. His lot was similar to many farmers' sons, who 
have to work their own way to some extent. His father was ever 
willing to help him what he was able, but he was under the neces- 
sity of obtaining fully one-half of the expense for his four years' 
course from manual labor or school-teaching. During his senior 
year seventeen weeks out of the thirty-eight were spent in teach- 
ing. Graduating from Dartmouth in the class of 1877, he com- 
menced the study of the law in September of that year in the office 
of Copeland & PIdgerly at Great Falls, N. H. In November he left 
to teach a three months' village school in Hampton, and again in 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 297 

the fall of 1878 was out of the office to teach a term of school at 
Newington. In December, 1879, he went to Sherbrooke, P. 0.,and 
entered the office of Brooks, Comirand & Hurd, where he was able 
to do office work to pay expenses. Soon after this, notes which he 
had given during his college course becoming due, the school-room 
was once more resorted to. At a public examination of teachers 
held at Sherbrooke, May 5, 1880, he received a first class academic 
diploma, which entitled him to teach in any school in the Province 
of Quebec. In August he engaged for one year to conduct the 
Frelighsburgh Grammar School at Frelighsburgh, P. Q. In the fall 
of 1 88 1 he became principal of the Barton Academy and Graded 
School at Barton, Vt. Here he diligently pursued the study of the 
law during his spare time in the office of Frederick W. Baldwin, 
Esq., and at the February term of the Orleans county court, after 
a very thorough examination, was admitted to the bar, and soon 
started for the West, and was admitted March 21, 1882, at Fargo 
to practice in the district court of Dakota. He settled at Grand 
Forks and commenced practice. From the first he gave much of 
his attention to loaning money for Eastern parties, ami this branch 
of his business soon grew to such an extent that the loans made by 
him in 1884 would aggregate fully one hundred thousand dollars. 
In February, 1885, the Grand Forks National Bank was established 
with an authorized capital of one hundred thousand dollars, and he 
was elected one of its directors. He was also elected one of the 
directors of the Grand Forks roller mills, a joint stock corporation 
manufacturing wheat flour, with a capital stock of the same amount 
as the bank. In June, 1885, Mr. Emery revisited his native state, 
and organized the New England Investment Company with a capi- 
tal of one hundred thousand dollars, and in July it was incorporated 
under the laws of Dakota, and Mr. Emery made its secretary and 
general manager. Mr. Emery has relinquished his law practice, as 
these large financial interests require his whole time. His thor- 
ough education and extensive reading well fitted him for the pro- 
fession of the law, but it none the less fitted him to discharge the 
arduous and responsible duties how devolving upon him. For the 
short time that Mr. Emery has been in the Northwest he has been 
highly successful, and bids fair to be one of the leading men of 
Dakota. He was married October 30, 1883, to Miss Isabel M. 



298 BIOGRAPHY OF THE BAR 

Stevens, an estimable lady of Great Falls, N. H. June 24, 1886, 
the degree of Master of Arts was conferred upon him by Dart- 
mouth College. 

FRANK H. RAND. 

FRANK H. RAND was born at Irasburgh, Vt., August 3, 
i86i, and is the son of William H. and Lucy (Forbes) Rand. 
His father has been a prominent man in the affairs of Orleans 
county for many years, having represented Irasburgh in the legis- 
lature in 1853, and was deputy collector of customs at Newport, 
Swanton and Troy from 1861 to 1880, and has been Deputy United 
States Marshal since 1867. Young Rand received his early educa- 
tion at the common schools and academies of his native county, 
and later attended the academy at St. Johnsbury. In 1879 he 
graduated from Eastman's Business College at Poughkeepsie, N. Y. 
He pursued the study of the law for a time in the office of Col. 
William R. Rowell at North Troy, and from there entered the law 
school at Albany, N. Y., where he graduated in June, 1882, and 
was admitted to practice in the courts of the state of New York. 
At the September term, A. D. 1882, he was admitted a member of 
the bar of Orleans county, and immediately commenced the prac- 
tice of his profession at North Troy, where he remained until July, 
1884, when he entered the employ of J. C. Ayer & Co., of Lowell, 
Mass., and is now traveling for them throughout the South. 



DON ALNEY STONE. 

DON ALNEY STONE, the son of Alney and Marcia (Par.sons) 
Stone, was born in Westford, Chittenden county, Vt., Decem- 
ber 8, 1853. His primary education was obtained at the common 
schools and at the New Hampton Institution, Fairfax, Vt. He 
graduated from the University of Vermont in the class of 1878, 
and studied law with Hon. L. H. Thompson of Irasburgh, and was 
admitted a member of the bar of Orleans county at its February 
term, A. D. 1883. In June, 1884, he was appointed deputy collec- 
tor and inspector of customs for the district of Vermont, and sta- 
tioned at Burlington where he still resides. He was married 
September 24, 1884, to Bessie F. Macomber, youngest daughter of 
J. H. Macomber of Westford. 



ORLEANS COUNTY, VERMONT. 299 

EDWIN A. COOK. 

THE subject of this sketch, the son of Amos C. and Sarah 
(Norton) Cook, was born in Glover, Vt., November 19, 1857. 
His grandfather, Amos Cook, was among the early settlers of that 
town. Nathan Norton, the grandfather of his mother, came in 
1803 from Strafford, Vt., to Glover, and built the second frame 
house in the town, and kept a hotel for a number of years. 
Nathan, Jr., the third of his nine children, was a prominent man in 
the town, holding most of the town trusts. He died in 1865, aged 
seventy years. He reared seven children. Edwin H. received his 
education at the common schools of his native town, Johnson Nor- 
mal School, and St. Johnsbury Academy. In 1876 he commenced 
the study of the law with F. W. Baldwin at Barton, and later pur- 
sued its study with Hon. L. H. Thompson at Irasburgh, and from 
his office was admitted to practice in the county and supreme 
courts of the state of Vermont, October 31, 1884, being the first 
person to be examined and admitted under the new rules adopted 
by the supreme court, requiring all examinations to be made by the 
committee appointed by the judges of the supreme court, at its 
general term each year. Immediately upon his admission to the 
bar he commenced the practice of his profession at Glover. He 
was married February 11, 1S85, to Carrie A. Morse, and they 
have one child. 



INDEX 



Abbott, Thomas 
Adams, Ira F. . 
Akeley, Healey C 
Alfred, Frank F. 
Allen, James T. . 
Allen, Charles P. 
Austin, Orlo H. 
Baldwin, Frederick W 
Baldwin, George 
Barker, Rinaldo A. 
Barron, William T. 
Bartlett, Thomas 
Bartlett, Don A. 
Bartlett, Enoch H 
Bartlett, Amasa 
Bartlett, Leavitt 
Bassett, Horace . 
Bates, Alonzo D. 
Bates, VVm. G. P. 
Bates, Henry C. 
Baxter, William 
Baxter, Carlos . 
Bell, James . . 
Benton, C. Henry 
Bentley, George C. 
Bisbee, Lewis H. 
Bloss, Chester W. 
Boardman, Norman 
Bradley, Joseph C. 
Brigham, Charles O 
Brown, Oliver T. 
Bulkley, Roger G 
Burbank, Peter . 
Burk, Asahel M. 
Burke, John C. . 
Burton, Harvey 



174 
286 

194 
275 
235 

2 C2 

286 
267 
187 
193 
16s 

38 
1 89 
212 
192 
210 

52 
194 
197 
241 

46 
104 

18 

243 
276 

227 

65 
152 

46 
277 
166 

53 

57 
220 
281 

80 



Cahoon, Edward A. 
Camp, David M. 
Carpenter, Amos H. 
Carpenter, B. F. D. 
Carr, John L. . . 
Carter, Ezra . . . 
Chadwick, David 
Chase, Moses 
Clark, Nathaniel S. 
Cooper, Jesse 
Colby, Stoddard B. 
Colby, John . 
Connal, Edson N. . 
Cook, Edwin . . . 
Cowles, Elijah S. 
Crane, Walter D. . 
Cushman, Isaac N. 
Cushman, Seth . 
Daggett, Charles B. 
Dale, George N. • . 
Dale, Solomon N. . 
Davis, Charles 
Dickerman, Jerry E. 
Dickerman, Wm. M. 
Dodge, Willis E. . 
Dorman, Julius S. . 
Eaton, William W. 
P2d wards, John L. . 
P211is, Joseph H. . . 
Emery, Eugene L. . 
Erwin, John W. . . 
Farr, PLlijah . 
Fleming, Charles N. 
Fletcher, Isaac . . 
Fletcher, Josiah A. 
Foster, John G. . . 



157 

59 
290 

2l8 

282 

49 
158 

45 
168 

98 
148 
188 
291 
299 
230 
213 
169 

15 
245 
245 
250 

65 
182 

163 
292 
225 

253 
158 

52 
296 
271 
1 22 
226 

22 
156 
29s 



302 



INDEX. 



Frost, Henry H. 
Frost, Hezekiah 
Fuller, Myron H. 
Fuller, John L. . 
Oilman, F"red 
Gould, David 
Grout, William W. 
Grout, Josiah 
Grout, Theophilus 
Harrington, F'ernando 
Hatch, Uriel C. . 
Heath, William . 
Hill, Nathan S. . 
Hill, Merrill J. . 
Holbrook, Albert M 
Howe, William . 
Johnson, Elbridge G, 
Johnson, Franklin 
Keeler, George P. 
Kendall, P. Redfield 
Kimball, John H. 
Kimball, Daniel F. 
Leslie, Miron 
Lewis, John L. . 
Manson, Albert . 
Mason, George M. 
Marsh, Joseph 
Marsh, Lewis 
Martin, Wm. H. 
Martin, Henry H. 
Mattocks, John . 
McGregor, Frank 1 
Meigs, Charles . 
Miles, Willard W. 
Mott, F'rederick . 
Moulton, Lsrael A. 
Nichols, L. H. . 
Nye, Salmon . . 
Olds, Jesse . . 



C. 



176 

52 
257 

52 
254 

71 
204 

238 

258 
178 
102 

175 
93 
221 
179 
69 
1 1 1 
119 
250 
269 

7S 
103 

94 

278 

141 

80 

48 

81 

156 

294 

9 

283 

74 
263 
191 
251 
269 
73 
50 



Paddock, Ephraim . . . 


36 


Paddock, James A. . . 


82 


Parker, Charles A. . . . 


165 


Poland, Luke P. . . . 


131 


Poor, B. W 


167 


Powell, Homer E. . . . 


274 


Prentiss, Charles W. . . 


122 


Prentiss, John H. . . . 


154 


Prentiss, Henry F. . . 


141 


Prouty, Charles A. . . 


279 


Rand, Nelson . . . 


272 


Rand, Frank H. . . 


298 


Randall, Eben A. . . 


169 


Redfield, Lsaac F. . . 


84 


Redfield, Timothy P. . 


141 


Read, Nathaniel, Jr., . 


7' 


Reynolds, Charles . . 


52 


Richardson, Wm. . . 


70 


Robinson, Charles . . 


190 


Robinson, J. Barney . 


226 


Robinson, Wallace L . 


273 


Rogers, Frank L. . . 


295 


Rowell, Wm. R. . . 


254 


Rowell, Charles J. . . 


276 


Sartle, John P. . . . 


174 


Sawyer, Joshua . . . 


53 


Shedd, Lyman M. . . 


259 


Sheaf e, Nathaniel T. . 


180 


Shurtleff, Amos J. . . 


265 


Simpson, James G. 


285 


Simonds, David K. 


249 


Smalley, David A. . . 


. 124 


Starkweather, Elisha H. 


77 


Steele, Benjamin H. . 


■ 197 


Steele, Sanford H. . . 


. 266 


Stewart, Edward A. . 


. 203 


Stone, Don A. . . . 


. 298 


Story, Charles . . . 


. 102 


Sumner, Samuel . . 


• 96 



INDEX. 



303 



Taylor, Sebastian F 
Todd, George W. 
Thompson, Leonard S. 
Thompson, Laforrest H. 
Tucker, George . 
Tupper, Fred L. 
Tyler, Milton R. 
Tyler, William U. 
Upham, Samuel . 
Vail, Charles I. . 
Vilas, Levi B. 
Wallace, John 
Walworth, Charles H 



109 
236 
251 
260 
186 
285 
223 
238 

52 
224 
105 

56 
284 



West, George C. 


74 


Wead, H. M. ... 


120 


Williams, Charles . . 


224 


Willard, .Samuel A. 


97 


Winchester, Elkanah . 


168 


Wilson, Henderson C. 


172 


Wilson, William D. . 


209 


Works, Henry . . . 


51 


Wright, Riley E. . . 


236 


Wyman, George D. 


231 


Young, Augustus . . 


55 


Young, John .... 


232 



i 






J 



